Chinese EV brands become major players

Chinese ‘new energy vehicles’ (NEVs) are taking the EV world by storm.

MG and BYD are among those becoming better known globally, the MG4 now the first Chinese brand to lead the EV field in New Zealand for a month (December) while BYD is reportedly outpacing Tesla sales in some countries.

They’re among more than 73,000 new battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales in New Zealand to the end of December 2023, alongside a further 30,000 plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), says EVDB.

It adds the new passenger car market is showing the strongest shift to electric.

EVDB says that last year one in four new cars registered in New Zealand were BEVs or PHEVs, noting that monthly data can be skewed by large Tesla deliveries about once a quarter.

About 50.8% of December 2023 new car registrations were EVs – up 18.1%, EVDB points out. That comprised 39.2% BEVs and 11.5% PHEVs, compared with 30.9% hybrids (plug less), 2.7% diesel and 15.6% petrol.

It says BEVs and PHEVs had more than 27% market share in 2023 and that the expansion in market share can be linked to incentives, a wider selection of EV models, and favourable pricing for entry-level vehicles, also noting the end of the Clean Car Discount (CCD) by January 1 this year.