AFP, April 23 (Editor Xia Junxiong) On Tuesday (April 23) local time, the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicted that electric vehicle sales will continue to grow strongly in 2024 despite economic headwinds in some markets. The agency also pointed out that the affordability of electric vehicle prices and charging infrastructure will be the key to achieving future sales growth.

The IEA said in its “Global Electric Vehicle Outlook” that global electric vehicle sales are expected to reach 17 million units this year, accounting for more than one-fifth of all cars sold globally. In contrast, the world sold a total of 14 million electric vehicles last year.

(2012-2024 electric vehicle sales, source: IEA)

According to IEA estimates, China will contribute more than half of electric vehicle sales this year, reaching 10 million units.

“Poor profits, fluctuating battery metal prices, high inflation, and the gradual removal of purchase incentives in some countries have raised concerns about the growth rate of the industry, but global sales data is still strong,” the report said.

The IEA quoted data as saying that global electric vehicle sales reached 3.4 million units in the first quarter of this year, an increase of 25% over the same period last year. This figure is the same as the growth rate in the first quarter of 2023, but it was achieved on the basis of a larger vehicle base.

According to the agency, the global sales volume of electric vehicles in the first quarter of this year is equivalent to the total sales volume for the whole of 2020.

The IEA predicts that the share of electric vehicles in total vehicle sales will vary from region to region, accounting for about one-ninth in the US, one-quarter in Europe, and close to half in China.

The agency said that the general weakness of passenger car sales prospects and the gradual elimination of subsidies by some countries hinder the spread of electric vehicles in Europe.

The report said that compared with traditional cars, affordability is still the key to the growth of the electric vehicle industry, and electric vehicle prices vary greatly from region to region.

In Europe and the US, combustion engine cars are still cheaper than electric cars, while in China, nearly two-thirds of the electric cars sold last year were cheaper than traditional cars.

Electric vehicles are generally becoming cheaper as battery prices fall, competition intensifies, and automakers achieve economies of scale, the IEA said. At the same time, it pointed out that under certain circumstances (adjusted for inflation), electric vehicle prices stagnated or even rose slightly between 2018 and 2022.

The agency added that how to keep up with the growth of electric vehicles is also a key challenge, and the charging network will need to grow sixfold by 2026.