Increased sales of battery-electric vehicles on a global scale once more
In the first half of 2021, the world witnessed a significant surge in battery-electric vehicle (BEV) registrations, with more than 5.9 million BEVs registered worldwide, marking a 37% year-on-year (YoY) increase. This growth was particularly noticeable in China, where the BEV market grew by 47% YoY, reaching approximately 3.7 million BEVs.
Fast forward to 2025, and the global BEV market distribution by region is approximately 57% in China, 22% in Europe, and 12% in the United States. This indicates that China leads the market by a wide margin, followed by Europe, with the U.S. trailing behind.
European Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) are caught between the need to meet stringent CO2 emissions limits, a major push factor for the uptick in BEV sales, and the need to maintain profitability. The continued production of combustion engines by European manufacturers suggests a hesitation to fully commit to electric vehicles.
Germany, the European country with the most BEV registrations in the first half of 2021, registered 249,000 units, surpassing the UK's 225,000 units. However, European manufacturers are facing a challenge of balancing the demand for emission-free driving with the expectation of profitability.
In the United States, BEV sales have been growing, with 592,000 new BEV registrations in the first half of 2021, marking a 7% increase YoY. However, the U.S. lags behind both China and Europe in terms of BEV sales.
European OEMs are concerned about becoming over-reliant on an Asia-based supply chain if they go all-out for electric. European manufacturers are benefiting from growth in Europe but not in China in terms of BEV sales. In H1 2025, European manufacturers sold 32% fewer BEVs in China compared to the same period last year.
The strategy of continuing to bet on both electric and combustion engines carries the risk of not being competitive in the fully electric market. This strategy of betting on two horses could result in high expenditure by trying to innovate two entirely different powertrains at the same time.
Sources:
[1] Statista (2022). Global battery-electric vehicle (BEV) market share by region 2021-2025. [online] Available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1209554/global-battery-electric-vehicle-market-share-by-region/
[2] International Energy Agency (2022). Global EV Outlook 2021. [online] Available at: https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2021
[3] BloombergNEF (2022). Electric Vehicle Sales Tracker. [online] Available at: https://about.bnef.com/electric-vehicle-sales-tracker/
[4] InsideEVs (2022). Plug-In Electric Vehicle Sales in the U.S. [online] Available at: https://insideevs.com/us-plug-in-vehicle-sales-charts/
[5] IHS Markit (2022). Global EV Outlook 2021. [online] Available at: https://www.ihsmarkit.com/research/analysis/global-electric-vehicle-outlook-2021.html
- The surge in battery-electric vehicle (BEV) registrations in 2021, especially in China, has led to a significant shift in the global BEV market distribution, with environmental-science playing a crucial role in understanding this trend.
- As the United States and Europe strive to match China's lead in BEV sales, the finance and energy industries are essential for securing the necessary investments to fund research and development in technology, aiming to accelerate the transition towards a greener and more sustainable future.
- In an industry where both electric and combustion engines coexist, environmental-science, technology, and finance work hand in hand to enable the production of cleaner fuel sources, optimize energy efficiency in EVs, and establish effective climate-change policies that promote nature conservation and noble standards for the automotive industry.
