Of the 14 million electric vehicles sold worldwide in 2023, China accounted for about 60 percent. Global sales rose 35 percent from 10.2 million the year before, although growth cooled in the second half. Electric vehicles made up 18 percent of all passenger car sales.
China’s new energy vehicle sales reached 9.5 million, a 38 percent jump. Plug-in hybrids did much of the lifting: 3.2 million sold in China, up 80 percent. The country also shipped 1.2 million electric vehicles abroad.
Who sold what
BYD sold 3 million electric vehicles in 2023. Tesla, the other name most buyers know, sold 1.81 million worldwide, 1.23 million of them Model Ys.
The rest of China’s field was crowded and mostly local. Geely sold 1.1 million new energy vehicles in China. Li Auto sold 376,000. The Wuling Hongguang Mini EV, a tiny city car, was the country’s top seller at 480,000. Tesla’s Model 3 led China’s electric imports with 220,000 sales.
Europe and the United States
Europe sold 2.4 million electric vehicles, up 20 percent. The EU reached a 14.6 percent market share, and Norway stood at 89 percent. Tesla’s Model Y was the top seller on the continent with 280,000.
In the United States, sales hit 1.2 million, a 50 percent rise, and electric vehicles took 7.6 percent of new car sales. California alone made up 40 percent of the total. The Model Y led there too, at 385,000.
The forecasts that came with the 2023 figures were steep. Global sales were expected to reach 17 million in 2024, and China was forecast to sell 11 million new energy vehicles that year.
