43% of all electric cars sold last year

A report by European researchers has revealed how quickly the world is taking up electric cars, with 43% of all electric powered vehicles ever produced sold last year.

But, according to the report by the German Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research, the 320,000 units sold, accounted for less than half a percent of the 85 million new vehicles sold worldwide.

According to the report, Nissan’s Leaf is the best-selling electric car in automotive history. The Netherlands has the second-biggest market share of electric cars, after Norway – and the United States leads in the total number, but the market share is well under 1%.

The report notes for those markets where the uptake is high, government subsidies are also significant.

“What these leading countries have in common is that electric mobility’s upward trajectory is largely attributable to market incentives,” says the report. “As in preceding years, Norway is living up to its reputation for pioneering this trend.”

American consumers bought 117,000 all-electric vehicles in 2014, led by the Nissan Leaf, Tesla Model S and BMW i3, putting the total number of EVs at about 290,000. Norwegians more than doubled their EV fleet last year, to 43,400, leading the world with a 1.6% market share.