Electric vehicle sales in Australia to surge in 2020

Long term Govt. incentive is required to retain this growth.

Australian electric vehicle (EV) sales are tipped to expand by 20.2% following a reported 50% YoY increase over the first five months of this year, according to a Fitch Solutions report. It further stated that the annual sales volume may rise to just over 8,000 units by the end of this year. The first three months of this year saw Tesla vehicles to account for over 70% of Australia’s EV market share, but the forecast suggests that this growth will weaken during the next nine years as no incentive option is in place. Without the incentive from the Government, the EV sales is forecasted to retain an annual average of just 6.9% over 2021-2029, Fitch Solutions said.

Meanwhile in April, hybrid vehicle sales jumped 64.1% YoY and the sales is expected to strengthen over the remainder of 2020. The report reflects an uncertainty though, as Australia’s economy is expected to contract by 1.9% this year. The highest unemployment rate of 6.2% in five years was recorded in April and the reserve Bank of Australia has projected it to increase to around 9% in May.

As a result, Fitch Solutions expects that these factors will have an impact on consumer spending over the coming months and as a result, the country’s total vehicle sales will reduce to 32.4%.

However, increased awareness on environmental impact and climate change will keep the demand for hybrid and electric vehicles relatively robust, the report suggests.