- Over 130,000 electric vehicles sold in Europe in Q1 2020
- Sales represent 6.8 percent of market, raise by 4.3 percent
- Passenger car sales fell 53 percent during same period
Electric vehicle sales rose in the first quarter of 2020 in Europe despite the overall market taking a massive hit because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sales of EVs reached 130,297 in the European Union, the UK, and countries who are part of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA).
That represents a 58 percent increase over electric vehicle sales in Europe in Q1 2019 and a 4.3 percent overall market share improvement for EVs in Europe.
That said, the vehicles sold represent just a 6.8 percent share of the 3,054,703 total vehicles sold in Europe during the first three months of the year.
Of the overall number of vehicles sold, 52.3 percent were gasoline vehicles and 29.9 percent were diesel. Overall sales of gasoline and diesel vehicles fell by 32.2 percent and 32.6 % respectively in the last three months.
Automotive sales have been falling drastically all over the world as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. In Canada, sales fell by 75 percent in April after falling by 48 percent in March 2020. Most dealerships across the country were forced to close or slow down their activities. Most of the dealers in country will be reopening their sales department in May, however.
This is certainly an encouraging sign for electric vehicles. With falling gas prices all across North America and the hurting sales market in North America, however, it will be interesting to see if EVs can replicate the same success this side of the pond.
