Global Electric Vehicle Markets & Trends

In the previous year, the global electric vehicle (EV) market grew amidst the COVID-19 pandemics. According to the Global Vehicle Market report published by research consultancy MarketandMarket, the EV market size is expected at 4.1 million units in  2021. It will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.8%, reaching 34.8 million units by 2030.

According to Deloitte’s report, the share of new car sales taken up by EVs will vary considerably across markets. Deloitte forecast China to achieve a domestic market share of around 48% by 2030, almost double that of the United State (27%), and Europe should achieve 42%. However, this does not render the whole story. Growth in Northern and Western Europe is expected to outstrip that in Southern and Eastern Europe as wealthier countries—such as the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Nordic countries—likely invest more in infrastructure and offer greater cash and tax incentives to accelerate initial growth.

Tesla, the world’s top seller, is consistently highlighted as one of the EV stocks to watch. However, analysts have also cited other companies which did not make the top five list as potentially good investments. Tesla’s strong performance this year has made market headlines as higher vehicle sales lifted its stock prices and boosted the company’s market capitalization above USD 1 trillion in late October 2021.

Founded in 2014, NIO is a Chinese Shanghai-based company and focused on the Chinese SUV market. To date, NIO has delivered 80,940 vehicles in 2021, up 120% year-on-year. While subsidies from the Chinese government have given NIO some price advantage in its domestic market. Nonetheless, NIO share prices have lost value compared to the beginning of the year 2021 at USD 53.49 a share. It was down 35% to USD 34.05 on December 9, 2021. Although NIO share prices did rise above USD 60 briefly in February 2021, prices have been in a downtrend for most of the year.

Known as Xpeng, Xiaopeng Motors is a Chinese EV carmaker based in Guangzhou, China.  The company targets the technology-savvy middle-class consumers in China and, like Tesla, is developing autonomous driving technology. Xpeng delivered 82,155 vehicles from January to November in the year 2021, up 285% year-on-year. The company’s smart sports sedan P7 model accounted for 65% of total sales.

The company was listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in August 2020. Its current share price is around double the USD 23.10 a share when it was first listed in 2020. Xpeng’s price started the year at USD 44.10 and surged to a high of USD 60.04 on January 25, 2021. It has since dropped to below USD 50. It was trading at USD 46.13 on December 9, 2021.

Article by: Asst. Prof. Suwan Juntiwasarakij, Ph.D., Senior Editor