Global electric vehicle sales keep climbing this year. Despite sharp pullbacks in the U.S. and a cooling pace in China, the numbers tell a story of persistent expansion. Total passenger EV sales are on track to exceed 23 million in 2026. That marks an 11 percent increase from 2025. And it pushes the share of all new cars sold to 27 percent, up dramatically from just 9 percent five years earlier.
The data comes from BloombergNEF’s latest outlook. BloombergNEF analysts point to falling battery costs and strong demand in emerging markets as key forces. Yet the picture varies widely by region. China still dominates. It accounted for 63 percent of global EV sales in 2025. Slowing growth there stems from tighter incentive rules and a maturing market. Sales in the U.S. face steeper trouble. They are forecast to drop 19 percent in 2026 after policy changes removed major tax credits.
But. Growth elsewhere more than compensates. Europe saw electric car sales jump 31 percent in early 2026 data cited by Investor’s Business Daily. Total EV sales hit 2 million in June alone. Up 7 percent from the prior year. That marked the fourth straight month of gains. Year to date through June, sales reached 9.6 million units. These figures from Benchmark Mineral Intelligence underscore resilience even as American buyers turned toward hybrids amid high gas prices near $5 a gallon in some areas.
The International Energy Agency paints a similar upward trajectory. Its Global EV Outlook 2026 projects sales around 23 million this year. Representing close to 28 or 30 percent of new vehicle purchases worldwide. One in three new cars in Europe could be electric. China approaches 60 percent domestic share. And markets across Asia Pacific outside China surge more than 50 percent. Latin America follows with 45 percent growth. IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol captured the shift. “Electric car sales set new records in close to 100 countries last year. The growing popularity of EVs has marked a major shift for car markets and the energy system as a whole.”
Emerging economies drive much of this momentum. In Southeast Asia, policies favoring local production boost uptake. Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines use tariff exemptions and excise tax breaks. Vietnam and Singapore focus on registration tax relief. Sales in Malaysia jumped 85 percent in the first half of 2026 to over 31,000 units. Recent social media posts on X highlight Proton’s role in that expansion. Meanwhile, Turkey reached 22 percent EV share in 2025. Singapore neared 50 percent. These gains reflect what analysts call leapfrogging. Consumers in developing nations skip traditional gasoline models for cheaper, increasingly affordable EVs from Chinese makers.
Chinese brands dominate the global leaderboard. BYD sold 1.249 million units from January through May 2026. More than double Tesla’s 596,000. Geely, Leapmotor, Wuling and others fill out the top ranks. Eleven of the top 20 brands are Chinese. They claim 64 percent of combined sales in that group. Xiaomi cracked the top 12 in only its second year of car production. Such competition pushes prices down. Battery costs have plummeted. That improves vehicle economics and broadens appeal beyond early adopters.
Yet challenges persist. In the U.S., new EV sales slowed after a rush to claim expiring federal tax credits in late 2025. Kelley Blue Book data shows Q2 2026 battery-electric sales at 247,226 units. A 14.7 percent rise from the first quarter but still down 20.5 percent from the prior year. Hybrids surged instead. Legacy automakers scaled back ambitious EV targets. Some reported losses on unsold inventory. Policy reversals under the current administration amplified uncertainty. North American sales fell sharply in early months. Down 35 percent in February and 33 percent in January according to Reuters reports drawing on Benchmark Mineral Intelligence.
Europe offers contrast. Sales grew 27 percent in the first quarter of 2026. Up 21 percent in February alone. The region added 1 million more electric cars in 2025 than the year before. Reaching 4.2 million total. Or 28 percent of new sales. Recent analyses from Electrek note March rebounds helped offset earlier softness. Global Q1 sales hit 4 million despite a 3 percent overall dip. China contributed 1.9 million but fell 21 percent amid subsidy adjustments. The rest of world outside major markets rose 78 percent in February per Reuters.
Oil price spikes from Middle East conflict added tailwinds. Higher gasoline costs made EVs more attractive in the UK, France, South Korea and beyond. Bloomberg reported intensified online searches for EV listings after the war began. March sales data confirmed jumps in those countries. Bloomberg noted the connection between fuel prices and EV interest. Longer term, such dynamics plus continued battery price declines should sustain the trend. BNEF has trimmed its forecasts for the second year running due to China and U.S. softness. Still, the firm sees over half of passenger vehicles electric by 2035.
EV Volumes takes a more cautious view. It forecasts 22.7 million sales in 2026 after 21.6 million in 2025. Share rising to 24.7 percent as incentives wane. Growth slows. No collapse. Rho Motion and other trackers recorded record months in 2025. September hit 2.1 million units. December crossed 2 million. Even with January and February 2026 dips, the annual total advances.
Automakers respond differently. Tesla holds strong in some markets. Its Model Y set Australian sales records in June. BYD eyes reclaiming the pure battery-electric crown. Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes and Korean players like Kia and Hyundai appear in global top 20 tallies. Hybrids bridge the gap for many buyers wary of range or charging access. In America, that preference shows clearly. Yet globally, pure EVs and plug-in hybrids together maintain momentum.
Analysts at BNEF sum it up. Aleksandra O’Donovan said the pace of transition “is becoming increasingly uneven across markets, driven largely by policy changes in the US and a maturing market in China. In spite of the unevenness, it is encouraging to see that the longer-term trend towards electrification remains intact, driven by improving vehicle economics, falling battery costs and rapid adoption across emerging markets.” Those factors outweigh temporary setbacks. Sales records keep falling. The shift spreads to more countries. Nearly 40 nations now exceed 10 percent EV share. Up from just four in Europe back in 2019.
So the narrative of stalled EV demand misses the full picture. Headlines focus on U.S. struggles or China’s plateau. Data reveals broader gains. From Southeast Asia factories to European cities to Latin American roads, electric cars gain ground. Gas vehicles face pressure as prices fluctuate and efficiency standards tighten. The transition isn’t uniform. It isn’t frictionless. But it continues. With 23 million or more EVs expected this year, the numbers don’t lie.
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