1 in 4 new cars sold in 2025 will be electric, new report says, and China is the undisputed EV leader

Inayat Singh · CBC News

· Posted: May 15, 2025 8:01 AM EDT | Last Updated: 6 hours ago

More than 1 successful 4 cars sold worldwide successful 2025 volition beryllium electric, according to the latest projections from the International Energy Agency, and volition scope 40 per cent of each caller cars by 2030.

Among large markets, the undisputed person is China, whose caller EV income accrued 40 per cent twelvemonth implicit twelvemonth successful 2024. About fractional of each caller cars sold successful the state past twelvemonth were electric, accounting for 11 million out of the 17 cardinal caller EVs sold worldwide. Meanwhile, income maturation was level successful Europe and conscionable 10 per cent successful the U.S.

Behind the numbers, the IEA's yearly Global EV Outlook shows however China's decades of investment have paid off, portion besides making electrical cars much affordable for buyers successful processing countries astir the world. In Europe and the U.S., EV income faced challenges due to the fact that of importantly much costly cars and scaled-back EV rebates, but stay connected a semipermanent upward trajectory.

"We're not going back, nary substance what immoderate radical mightiness accidental oregon think. We are moving successful the modulation to EVs," said Daniel Breton, president of Electric Mobility Canada, an manufacture association.

Relatively affordable Chinese EVs besides drove up income by 60 per cent successful emerging economies successful Asia, Latin America and Africa. 

In Canada, EVs grew their marketplace share, rising to 17 per cent of each caller cars sold successful 2024, up from 13 per cent successful 2023. Last year, 252,000 afloat electrical oregon plug-in hybrid electrical cars were sold successful Canada. 

But EV manufacturing remains tiny here, astatine just 25,000 cars annually. 

How China dominates

China's occurrence successful EVs has been decades successful the making, according to James Jackson, probe chap astatine the University of Manchester who has an upcoming publication connected the governmental system of the EV transition. 

And to understand China's reasoning for its dense concern successful the industry, helium says, 1 indispensable instrumentality into relationship the symbolic worth of home car manufacturing, successful summation to the economical benefits.

"If you spell and bargain a BYD, you are past testament to superior Chinese manufacturing, and you volition truthful by hold beryllium symbolizing Chinese development, that it is not this import-dependent, predominantly agriculture-based economy," helium said, referring to the fashionable Chinese EV brand. 

"They are the ascendant powerfulness now."

Because the car assemblage is truthful tied into a country's self-image arsenic an concern power, Jackson said, Beijing went each successful connected EVs, entering an manufacture that was different dominated by companies successful Europe, North America and Japan.

By the aboriginal 2000s, China's cardinal and authorities governments were pouring subsidies into EV companies, galore of which failed initially. But this also led to dense contention betwixt the startups, Jackson says, driving down EV prices and yet creating a institution similar BYD, the world's largest EV maker, which is engaged expanding overseas adjacent arsenic it faces steep tariffs successful the U.S. and Canada. In 2024, two-thirds of the caller EVs sold successful China were really cheaper than their equivalent gas-powered cars, according to the report. 

Part of BYD's — and China's — success is the vertically integrated concern model. The state besides dominates successful making the batteries, sourcing their minerals and financing for car buyers. According to the IEA report, China accounts for 70 per cent of planetary EV production.

BYD adjacent has its ain ships for exporting its cars.

The result: Today, BYD has electrical cars priced arsenic debased arsenic $11,000.

Where does that permission Canada?

The study warned of the impacts of the U.S. President Donald Trump's commercialized and tariff threats connected the EV market. In response, Canada has slapped 25 per cent tariffs connected definite vehicles and parts imported from the U.S. 

But Electric Mobility Canada has enactment retired a caller study showing that astir electrical cars are not taxable to these counter-tariffs, arsenic astir EVs sold successful Canada travel from Europe and South Korea, not the U.S.

WATCH | How Canada's tariffs connected Chinese EVs could interaction competition: 

The relation recommends that Canada should support its EV Availability Standard, which yet requires companies to merchantability lone electrical cars successful the state by 2035.

Hongyu Xiao, a proscription expert astatine the Pembina Institute, a Canadian cleanable vigor think-tank, says wide adoption of EVs is important for Canada to conscionable its clime goals. Transportation is the second-largest emitting assemblage successful the country, aft lipid and gas.

"The clime benefits of the EV are successful information adjacent much pronounced [in Canada] due to the fact that we are not burning ember oregon a batch of state to powerfulness the EV. We are utilizing a batch of nuclear, hydro, renewable energy," helium said.

Apart from income targets, Xiao said, the authorities should reconstruct its EV inducement program, which provided up to $5,000 toward an EV purchase. Ottawa ended that programme earlier this year, although immoderate provinces person continued their rebates.

On the manufacturing front, Xiao suggested that Canada has an vantage successful presumption of captious minerals for batteries, and could pull carmakers arsenic the U.S. pulls back. But the authorities would request to pave the mode for companies by designing regulations making it easier for them to put successful Canada

But ultimately, the EV manufacture — and carmaking arsenic a full — volition apt beryllium mostly led by China into the future, Jackson says. Legacy car companies volition person to fig retired wherever they fit into China's proviso chain, Jackson said, oregon research niches successful the car marketplace wherever companies similar BYD don't dominate. 

"There volition inactive beryllium Volkswagen and Ford and Peugeot successful the adjacent 20, 30, possibly 50 years.But I deliberation they'll beryllium operating astatine a wholly antithetic standard successful presumption of however overmuch cars they're producing."