Bank of America tracked electric vehicle sales for December and FY 2023 finding in December 2023 that global Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) sales achieved a record high of 1.1 million units, marking a 19% YoY increase and pushing the penetration rate beyond 14% for the first time.
China experienced a resurgence in BEV sales, rising by 38% YoY in December and 32% in the 4Q. Meanwhile, the EU saw a 20% decline in December due to the phasing out of subsidies the previous year, but the penetration rate in the EU still reached a new high of over 22% in December.
Reflecting on the entire year of 2023, Bank of America found there was substantial growth in global BEV sales, totaling 10 million units, representing a 30% YoY increase and an additional 2.3 million units. This growth, although strong, showed a deceleration from the previous year (2022) when the increase was 60% YoY, with an additional 2.9 million units.
The United States outperformed expectations with a 47% YoY increase, gaining 1.4pps in market share, reaching approximately 12%. Europe experienced a 33% YoY growth, achieving a market share of 22.5%, an increase of 0.6pps.
In contrast, China's growth was around 20% YoY, but it's important to note that the comparison base in China is much higher.
In absolute terms, China contributed approximately 1 million units to the global BEV growth in 2023, constituting nearly 50% of the total global BEV growth, surpassing all other regions.
BYD gained 3.8ppt in global market share, surpassing Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) in H2 2023. Tesla maintained its BEV market leadership with an 18.1% global market share, gaining 1ppt YoY.
In the EU, only Volkswagen increased its market share by 0.1ppt, while Stellantis’ (STLA) BEV sales declined ahead of its 2024 model offensive.
Among EU premium OEMs, BMW outperformed Mercedes-Benz, expanding its BEV market leadership by 0.9ppt, reaching 4.2% compared to Mercedes-Benz's 2.4%. In the U.S., General Motors (NYSE:GM) gained 0.6ppt, outperforming Ford (NYSE:F), which lost 0.2ppt.