Gasoline-powered cars accounted for less than half of global new-car sales in the first half of this year for the first time, as high oil prices and improving electric-vehicle affordability pushed buyers toward EVs.
Gasoline Cars Lose Majority as EVs Grow
Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported on the 2nd, citing global mobility data, that gasoline car sales worldwide totaled 20.25 million units from January through June, down 10% from a year earlier. The figure excludes electrified vehicles such as hybrids.
Gasoline cars made up 49% of all new vehicles sold, down 3 percentage points. It is the first time on record that gasoline cars have held less than half of the market on a half-year basis since automobiles came into widespread use in the 1920s. The share has fallen 24 percentage points in five years from 73% in 2021.
Analysts attribute the shift to rising international oil prices amid instability in the Middle East, which has increased the cost of driving gasoline vehicles. Gasoline car sales fell 26% in China and 13% in Europe.
EV sales, by contrast, rose 12% to 6.87 million units. Their share of all new vehicles climbed 3 percentage points to 17%. In Europe, EV sales jumped 32% to 1.81 million units and surpassed gasoline car sales in 31 major countries for the first time on a half-year basis. Southeast Asia posted 350,000 units, up 81%, while Oceania recorded 110,000 units, a 2.2-fold increase.
Korea Sees EV Sales Surge as Prices Become More Competitive
EVs are rapidly gaining ground in the South Korean market as well. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and other sources, domestic EV sales reached 268,092 units from January through August, up 90.2% from the same period last year. EVs accounted for 24.4% of the new-car market, roughly double the 12.8% a year earlier. In August alone, 31,060 units were sold, taking a 28.3% share of domestic sales.
Imported EVs led the increase. Tesla sold 10,400 units in August, accounting for 33.5% of all EV sales, according to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association. BYD, which entered the Korean market last year, has sold 17,523 units so far this year.
EV price competitiveness has also improved. Electric-vehicle battery pack prices averaged $99 per kilowatt-hour last year, staying below $100 for a second consecutive year and down 28.3% from 2022, according to BloombergNEF.
Trends diverge by country, however, depending on policy. EV demand has slowed in the United States after the Trump administration scrapped subsidies, prompting Honda and General Motors to adjust their EV strategies. The U.S. used-EV market, by contrast, saw sales of 44,350 units last month, up 25.9% from the previous month and 14.7% from a year earlier.
With high oil prices and falling battery costs likely to persist, analysts say EV adoption could continue to expand over the medium to long term.
