Global NEV Sales Reach 2.19 Million Units in 2Q22, TESLA Market Share Falls to 15.9%, Says TrendForce

The new car market remained under the shadow of supply chain shortages and the pandemic in 2Q22 but new energy vehicles (NEVs including battery electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and fuel cell vehicles) still outperformed gasoline vehicles and maintained positive growth. According to TrendForce data, total sales of NEVs in 2Q22 reached 2.192 million units, 53.5% YoY. Sales of battery electric vehicles (BEV) reached 1.608 million units, 64.9% YoY, and sales of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) were 580,000 units, 29% YoY.

In BEV brand rankings, although TESLA still tops the list, its market share has dropped sharply and the company’s single-quarter market share has dropped from 20.1% in 1Q22 to a new low of 15.9%. Due to the loss of production capacity coming from TESLA's Shanghai plant in April caused by China's lockdown measures and the fact that mass production has yet to begin at TESLA's Berlin plant and Texas plant, capacity allocation has become a headache for Tesla. At present, in addition to industriously increasing the mass production capacity of its new plants, Tesla is also upgraded its Shanghai plant in July to increase production capacity. However, TrendForce believes that it is becoming increasingly difficult for TESLA to recover greater market share as traditional automakers are narrowing the gap with TESLA including in accelerating vehicle launches, increasing the variety of models, strengthening factory manufacturing capabilities, and accelerating iterations of assisted driving systems.

Second-ranked BYD has provided a wealth of options in terms of car models and its global market share has risen from 9.3% in 1Q22 to 11.2%. Chinese brands landed six of the top 10 ranks in 2Q22 due to their huge market advantages. Among the top 10 brands that do not rely on China as their most important market are Hyundai and KIA. Their primary markets for BEVs are South Korea, Europe, and North America. It is worth mentioning that luxury automakers BMW and Mercedes-Benz have climbed to 12th and 14th place after accelerating their transition to BEVs.

In terms of PHEVs, BYD ranked 1st with sales of 173,000 units in 2Q22 and a market share of 29.8%. Furthermore, in addition to another automaker which focuses on PHEVs, Li Auto, making it onto the ranking, the top 10 also includes MG (acquired by Shanghai Automobile) and LYNK & CO (a joint venture established by Geely Automobile and Volvo), which have taken advantage of booming demand in China’s domestic market. Contrarily, PHEVs in the European market have experienced negative annual growth for two consecutive quarters, inhibiting the growth of European brands. PHEVs are hybrids that still emit carbon during in use, but are considered a good alternative for reducing carbon emissions in large and high-emission vehicles. Jeep, owned by Stellantis, has remained in the top 10 for four consecutive quarters after turning intently to PHEV electric vehicle technology.

Although many obstacles remain for the production processes of the automotive market, TrendForce expects conditions to gradually improve in 2H22. The growth trend of NEVs will remain unchanged and the overall sales forecast remains optimistic. The penetration rate of NEVs in the overall automotive market is expected to reach 13% in 2022.

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