Electric cars captured more than half of all annual car sales in China for the first time in 2025, according to International Energy Agency data. Almost all the growth came from pure battery electric vehicles, while plug-in hybrids saw only a 4% increase.
China’s historic EV milestone
“Intense domestic competition, attractive prices and the growing availability of different models have supported the rapid rollout of EVs in China,” according to the International Energy Agency’s latest Global Energy Review.
The milestone underscores Beijing’s decade-long EV bet and the speed at which markets can flip when scale, subsidy, and manufacturing converge.
IEA forecasts that EVs will account for close to 30% of all cars sold worldwide in 2026, reaching 23 million units
Electric vehicle adoption has crossed into mainstream territory globally. In 2025, electric car sales increased by more than 20% year-on-year to reach 21 million units, meaning one in four cars sold was electric.
That 30% figure marks a structural shift in the global auto market, which js no longer a niche or emerging technology, but a dominant segment reshaping how the world drives.
India’s domestic manufacturing surge
India’s EV market is accelerating from a much smaller base but with a distinct advantage: local makers are winning. Annual sales of all EVs reached a record 2.3 million units in 2025, with electric car sales increasing by over 75%.
Around 60% of electric car sales in India came from vehicles produced domestically by Tata Motors and Mahindra. Mahindra recorded a fivefold increase in EV sales after launching two new electric models during the year. The country also witnessed rapid expansion in EV model availability, with the number of electric car models available increasing from 33 in 2024 to 45 in 2025.
Government policy is expected to play a critical role in the next phase. India finalized the Scheme to Promote Manufacturing of Electric Passenger Cars in India (SPMEPCI) in June 2025, allowing selected automakers to import completely built-up electric vehicles priced above $35,000 at a reduced import duty of 15%, compared with duties of up to 110% for non-eligible imports. The scheme is valid for five years.
Beyond four-wheelers, India’s electric three-wheeler market is surging. Sales rose 15% to nearly 800,000 vehicles, capturing almost 70% of all three-wheeler sales in the country and primarily displacing compressed natural gas models.
