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First-quarter EV sales in North America rose 16% to half a million, though tariffs and tax break elimination would curb growth.
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Global electric-vehicle sales jumped in the first quarter, though market analysts expect the growth to slacken as a trade war and reduced incentives are poised to dampen sales.
EV deliveries surged 29% year-over-year to four million, according to data by EV and battery research provider Rho Motion. The growth was led by China, which saw a 36% uptick to 2.4 million.
Meanwhile, EV sales in North America rose 16% to half a million. And though about three-fifths of EVs sold in the states are made there, U.S. trade tariffs will likely increase prices of both EVs and gas-powered models, said Rho Motion, which indicated that most of the remaining U.S.-sold EVs are made in Japan, Korea and Mexico.
President Donald Trump signaled on Monday that he’s considering giving automakers a break on 25% auto import tariffs to give them more time to transition overseas production to the U.S.
But it remains to be seen how the many trade permutations the White House has introduced over the past six weeks would ultimately gel into a long-term policy. The administration also recently stopped providing EV charger development funding to states and aims to eliminate federal tax breaks for EV purchases and leases.
“This quarter, while turbulent, has seen a strong rate of growth globally for the EV market,” said Rho Motion Data Manager Charles Lester.
“What is sure is that the electric vehicle market is already struggling to compete with ICE on cost, so reductions in subsidies and hefty tariffs for a very international supply chain are guaranteed to have a cooling effect on the industry.”
Many European countries saw sharp upsurges in EV adoption in the quarter, the company observed. Germany’s sales grew 37%, Italy’s 64% and the United Kingdom’s 42%. France, though, has ended government incentives for EV purchases and consequently saw an 18% drop in sales, Rho Motion said.
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