Gasoline-only vehicles fell below half of global new vehicle sales for the first time on record, according to Mobility Global data cited by Nikkei Asia. Between January and June, sales of gas-powered vehicles excluding hybrids fell 10% from a year earlier to 20.25 million cars, and their share of total global automotive sales dropped 3 percentage points to 49%, the data showed.
The shift followed the Hormuz crisis, $100 oil prices and record gasoline and diesel prices, which analysts said pushed consumers in Europe, South America and Asia Pacific toward electric vehicles. China had already surpassed 50% combined hybrid and EV sales and now stands at about 55%, while markets outside China lagged until the Iran war disrupted fuel markets, according to the report.
The milestone is the first time gasoline-only cars have accounted for less than half of global new vehicle sales, according to the data.
Global Sales Data and Regional Rebound
The International Energy Agency said in a July update that global EV sales rose 35% in the second quarter from the first quarter after the Middle East crisis slashed crude supply and hiked oil and fuel prices. Second-quarter EV sales reached record highs in 50 countries, according to the IEA. Electric car sales roughly doubled between March and June in Brazil, India, Australia and Vietnam compared with the same period in 2025, the IEA analysis stated, and as many as 90 countries saw annual growth in EV sales in the first half of the year.
Global EV sales shares remain far below China's level, but the report described the shift as remarkably fast amid spiking gasoline and diesel prices. The World Bank reported Brent crude prices averaged $106 a barrel in the second quarter, up 49% from a year earlier.
Other measures indicate how the fuel shock is moving through the broader economy. U.S. diesel prices crossed $6 a gallon for the first time, according to GasBuddy, with AAA data confirming the national average hit $6.06 a gallon on Sept. 11, up from $5.98 the previous day, exceeding the prior peak of $5.82 per gallon set on June 17, 2022, in the aftermath of Russia's invasion of Ukraine [1].
European BEV Sales Jump as Fuel Prices Set Records
Battery electric vehicle sales in Europe, including the UK, Switzerland and Norway, surged 52.2% in August from a year earlier, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, ACEA. BEV sales in Germany soared 75% in August year-over-year as gasoline prices in Germany hit an all-time high of 2.31 euros per liter, equivalent to about $10 per gallon, ACEA data showed. EV sales in France more than doubled, according to market data.
An analysis by the German Institute for Economic Research, DIW, found that one in every four passenger cars sold in Germany between January and August was a pure battery electric vehicle, while in August one in every three was a BEV, compared with an average of 19% in 2025. Germany introduced a purchase premium for EVs from January 2026, and DIW said earlier this week that sales are accelerating.
China, meanwhile, is pushing further. China aims to have electric and hybrid vehicles account for as much as 70% of all passenger car sales by 2030, in a massive transport shift set to further dent oil demand for road fuels. As of the end of last year, the share of so-called new energy vehicles was 54% of all passenger vehicle sales, according to the new five-year plan for the automotive industry compiled by nearly a dozen Chinese government bodies [2]. China is also developing other technologies that could accelerate electric vehicle adoption, with Chinese battery giant CATL unveiling its next-generation sodium-ion battery, poised to replace lithium-ion as the dominant EV power source [3].
Fuel Market Disruption and Analyst Expectations
The Hormuz crisis produced the second oil price shock in four years and record diesel and gasoline prices, according to reports. The IEA said the energy crisis sparked by the war in the Middle East brought fuel price volatility back into sharp focus. The global fuel price shock stemming from a conflict in the Middle East drove renewed consumer interest in alternatives, as Chinese electric vehicle exports soared by 140% to a record high in March, according to data released this month [4].
Analysts at Wood Mackenzie said the accelerating EV adoption that began with the spike in oil and fuel prices is set to remain a trend in global markets and could push the share of EVs in the passenger fleet above earlier expectations. Analysts cited the possibility that high oil and fuel prices could permanently accelerate EV adoption if the Strait of Hormuz crisis continues to roil global fuel markets.
Buyers have shown that they respond to fuel prices at the pump, and the historical record is clear on the relationship. A plunge in oil prices in 2014 from a high of over $100 to less than $50 per barrel juiced consumer demand for gas-guzzlers and undercut the case for EVs, and EVs fell as a share of new vehicles, dropping from 3.5% to 2.9% [5].
Constraints and Outlook
Challenges to accelerated adoption remain, including the need for billions of U.S. dollars in investments in critical battery minerals supply and charging networks, analysts said. Charging infrastructure and critical-mineral supply were described as major constraints to faster EV adoption.
Wood Mackenzie analysts said the longer the Strait of Hormuz crisis roils global fuel markets, the stronger the case for EV adoption could become. Adoption rates vary by market and depend on fuel prices, policy incentives and infrastructure availability, according to the reports, with no single projection for future sales shares.
The fuel shock also raises the question of how quickly the global vehicle fleet can change. Other analysis has found that the economic viability of electric vehicles requires oil to be priced at a high level relative to historical values, with a study by Lipman and Delucchi predicting gasoline breakeven prices at $2.65 per gallon in 2006 dollars for a fully electric hybrid vehicle over a 15-year lifespan [6].
References
- U.S. Average Diesel Prices Cross $6 a Gallon for First Time, GasBuddy Says. https://www.naturalnews.com/2026-09-13-us-diesel-prices-surpass-six-per-gallon-nationwide.html
- China's 70% EV Target Deals Another Blow To Oil Demand. https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/chinas-70-ev-target-deals-another-blow-oil-demand
- China's CATL unveils game-changing sodium-ion EV batteryùa blow to lithium dominance and Western energy control - NaturalNews.com, April 24, 2026.
- Chinas Electric Vehicle Exports Reach Record High Amid Fuel Price Surge - NaturalNews.com, April 14, 2026.
- Taming the sun: innovations to harness solar energy and power the planet by Sivaram Varun
- Maximizing ef?ciency in the transition to a coal-based economy by J. Brathwaite. Energy Economics 31 C (2009)
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