Global sales of electric cars and PHEV plug-in hybrids increased by 30.5% year-on-year in September, according to data released by Rho Motion.
A record 1.7 million plug-in vehicles were sold worldwide in September. This September surpassed the previous record set in December 2023 by 150,000 vehicles.
Rho Motion details that the Chinese market beat its previous record, set in August, by 90,000 vehicles to reach 1.12 million units sold in September 2024 (up 47.9% year-on-year).
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North America
In the United States and Canada, sales rose by 4.3% to 150,000 cars, while in Europe, sales have risen again. They did so timidly with 4.2% to 300,000 units, thanks to a 24% jump in the United Kingdom and gains in Italy, Germany, and Denmark.
In total, 11.5 million PHEVs and plug-in hybrids have been sold worldwide so far this year, up 22% year-on-year. Still, growth is uneven.
China alone accounts for more than half of the world total; those of the USA and Canada are growing steadily, while the figures for Europe are declining.
Thus, sales of plug-in vehicles between January and September 2024 compared to the same period in 2023 represent a decline in Europe, while growth is maintained globally.
In that period, sales grew by 35% in China, to 7.2 million cars, and by 10% in the United States and Canada, with 1.3 million cars. In Europe, on the other hand, sales fell by 4% to 2.2 million units. In the rest of the world as a whole, sales grew by 25% to just under one million units.
At the same time and in the United States, according to a new report from the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, internal combustion engine cars recorded the largest loss of market share of all vehicle categories in the first half of 2024, with a decline of 2.3%.
Less than 10 years ago, sales of internal combustion engine vehicles, whether gasoline or diesel, accounted for virtually the entire U.S. auto market.
