A recent report has revealed that global electric vehicle (EV) sales experienced a remarkable 50% year-on-year growth in the second quarter (Q2) of this year. China’s domestic market continued to dominate the global EV landscape, although its growth rate did not match that of other major markets.
According to the report, Chinese EV companies maintained their dominance, benefiting from their scale advantages within the Chinese market. They accounted for an impressive 56% of global unit sales during this period. However, it’s worth noting that this represented the lowest Q2 performance for Chinese EV companies in the last three years, according to Counterpoint Research.
“BYD Auto, GAC Group, and Geely Holdings were three of the world’s top five passenger EV makers last quarter, yet none are household names in the west. They sell most of their cars at home,” noted Archie Zhang, Research Analyst, China.
Outside of China, the trend in the EV market leaned toward the premium executive segment, where larger, pricier, and often more luxurious passenger EVs gained traction.
“Tesla is obviously a big influence, but increasingly Hyundai Kia, Volkswagen, BMW, and Mercedes are moving the needle in premium,” highlighted Soumen Mandal, senior analyst for the automotive industry.
In the pursuit of premium EVs, automakers are striving to create vehicles that resemble smartphones more than traditional cars. Tesla, renowned for its vertically integrated platform, has set the gold standard in the EV industry.
Modern EVs require up to 3-4 times more advanced chips and various hardware components, including cameras, sensors, power controllers, batteries, and more. Ensuring a consistent supply of these components is crucial to manufacturing EVs that offer advanced and competitive user experiences, as highlighted in the report.
“Tesla has been showing everyone how to make a rolling computer for years, and the industry is just now following suit. As computing requirements grow exponentially, so too will chip intensity per vehicle. This could have big implications for semiconductor demand as EV production ramps up over the next few years,” explained Brady Wang, Associate Director of Semiconductors and Components.
As the EV market continues to evolve and expand globally, these insights reflect the shifting dynamics, increasing competition, and growing consumer interest in electric vehicles.
