Global electric vehicle sales up 109% in 2021 with half sold in China: Canalys
AN ESTIMATED 6.5 million electric vehicles (EVs) were sold worldwide in 2021, leaping 109 per cent from 2020, according to technology research company Canalys.
This is despite the total global car market growing only 4 per cent on the back of the Covid-19 pandemic and chip shortages, the report on Monday (Feb 14) noted.
Canalys noted that demand for EVs, which include both fully-electric and plug-in hybrid passenger cars, stayed strong in 2021, but pointed out that "many more" would have been sold if not for car manufacturers facing "chronic component shortages".
About half of the 6.5 million electric vehicles, which include both fully-electric and plug-in hybrid passenger cars, were sold to customers in mainland China.
Jason Low, principal analyst at Canalys, said EVs make up 15 per cent of new cars sold China in 2021, which is more than double the percentage in 2020. He noted there could be a "huge opportunity for future growth in 2022 and beyond" as new models are launched monthly in each market segment, from city cars to sports utility vehicles.
The Wuling Hongguang Mini EV, manufactured by a joint venture (JV) between SAIC, General Motors (GM) and Wuling, remained China's best-selling EV model in 2021 since its release in 2020, the report added.
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Europe continued to boast the highest level of EV adoption, with 2.3 million or 19 per cent of all car sales in 2021 being EVs. This is in spite of long wait times for new EVs due to chip shortages, with Canalys analyst Ashwin Amberkar highlighting "not unusual" 9 to 12-month periods.
Tesla's Model 3 was the European best-seller, although Volkswagen Group was the continent's leading manufacturer for electric vehicles, the report stated.
Meanwhile, EV sales in the US continued to lag behind China and Europe at just 4 per cent of all cars sold notwithstanding several new EV launches, and increasing sales momentum and consumer interest. Tesla continues to dominate US EV sales with an estimated market share of just under 60 per cent, the report said.
Chris Jones, vice president and chief analyst of Canalys, said pick-up trucks will give the US EV market "a huge lift in 2022".
"Rivian was first to deliver at the end of 2021, while Ford and GM have had strong interest in the F-150 Lightning and GMC Hummer Pickup respectively," he said.
Globally, Tesla remains at the forefront of the worldwide vehicle market at a 14 per cent share. Volkswagen is second with a 12 per cent market share, having doubled EV sales in 2021 as it leads the Europe market. SAIC, which includes the SAIC-GM-Wuling JV, rounds out the top 3 with an 11 per cent market share.
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