SALES of all types of electric vehicles rose more than 40 per cent in China last year, while those of petrol-powered cars plunged, industry data showed today.

A massive total of 31.4 million vehicles were sold last year in the world’s biggest market by sales, up 4.5 per cent compared from a year earlier, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers reported. 

Growth in sales outpaced production, which rose 3.7 per cent.

China’s exports of passenger cars jumped almost 20 per cent in 2024, to almost five million vehicles. 

Out of that, exports of China’s “new energy vehicles,” including battery EVs, fuel-cell cars and plug-in hybrids — electric vehicles with a small petrol-powered engine to back up the batteries — reached 1.28 million. 

The level of exports represents a 6.7 per cent increase from 2023.

Domestically, sales of passenger cars rose 13.6 per cent in December, driven in part by rebates for trade-ins, raising sales of all passenger cars in China by 3.1 per cent for the year, to 22.6 million.

Sales of traditional petrol and diesel-powered vehicles fell 17 per cent in 2024, from 14 million to 11.6 million. The sales — 51 per cent of all new car sales — brought China within a whisker of joining a handful of countries in the world that sell more new energy vehicles than petrol.

The success of the Chinese move to electric vehicles has left foreign competitors such as Volkswagen AG and Nissan, that for years have counted on strong demand in China to burnish their bottom lines, scrambling to develop electric vehicles for the Chinese market. 

Honda and Nissan recently announced plans to pursue a merger in part to meet the challenge of China’s rising EV makers.

The continued rapid expansion of China’s EV sales contrasts with the United States and Europe, where growth has slowed.