Rho Motion: Global electric vehicle sales will reach 1.2 million in February 2025, a year-on-year increase of 50%

According to media reports, global electric vehicle sales increased significantly in February, mainly due to a 76% increase in the Chinese market . According to data compiled by Rho Motion, global sales of pure electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles jumped to 1.2 million in February, up 50% from the same period last year. Data released separately by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers showed that about three-quarters of the sales came from China, where electric vehicle purchases increased 87% from last year.

“Most of the growth is still coming from China, which has seen a renaissance in pure electric vehicle sales this year, compared with a preference for hybrids in 2024, ” said Charles Lester, data manager at Rho.

China continues to dominate the global market for electric and gas-guzzling vehicles. In the first two months of 2025, coinciding with the peak consumer season of the Lunar New Year, China’s electric vehicle sales grew 35% to 1.4 million, accounting for about 60% of the world’s total electric vehicle sales during the period.

In China, sales of pure electric vehicles grew 46% . A slew of new models from BYD, Xiaomi, Xpeng and Zeekr are encouraging consumers to ditch gasoline-electric hybrids and go all-in on the electric vehicle revolution . Sales of plug-in hybrids grew 22%, a slower pace than the same period last year, Rho said.

BYD's growth momentum remains strong as it surpasses Tesla to become the world's largest "pure" electric vehicle manufacturer in the fourth quarter of 2023. The Shenzhen-based automaker said its sales of electric and hybrid vehicles reached 133,361 in the first two months. Its exports doubled to 67,025 in February, setting an export record for the third consecutive month.

Tesla continued to lose market share to local Chinese competitors in mainland China in February, with sales plunging more than 50% to 30,688 vehicles last month, a sharper drop than the 49.2% drop in January.