One in four new cars sold globally this year will be an electric vehicle, according to a new report from the International Energy Agency.

While the rest of the world accelerates toward 25% EVs, America lags well behind. According to Kelley Blue Book parent company Cox Automotive, EVs made up just 6.8% of the new cars Americans bought in March. Sales in the U.S. are still growing — Americans bought 18.5% more EVs in March of 2025 than in the same month last year. But the U.S. lags well behind the rest of the world in adoption.

China is the heart of the global EV industry. In 2024, the Chinese bought 11 million EVs — “more than were sold worldwide just two years earlier.”

In China, about 10% of cars currently on the road are electric, the report says. Globally, about 4% of operating cars use electric power.

“Emerging markets in Asia and Latin America have also become new centers of growth, with total electric car sales across these regions surging by more than 60% in 2024,” the agency says.

Government support boosting the transition
Government officials from France charge an electric car at a supermarket parking lot during a visit dedicated to electric vehicle charging stations near Paris on May 16, 2025. The ministerial visit aimed to present the progress made in the deployment of a charging network that meets the needs of users as part of France’s goals to transition to electric vehicles.
Government officials from France charge an electric car at a supermarket parking lot during a visit dedicated to electric vehicle charging stations near Paris on May 16, 2025. The ministerial visit aimed to present the progress made in the deployment of a charging network that meets the needs of users as part of France’s goals to transition to electric vehicles.
Photo: AFP via Getty Images
China’s success comes as part of a government effort to build the world’s most successful auto industry. “In addition, China’s electric car market benefited from the introduction of a trade-in scheme in April 2024,” the report explains. That scheme incentivizes drivers to trade in a gas-powered car for an electric one.

The countries that have traditionally powered global car sales, meanwhile, are not keeping up.

“Global sales were slightly tempered by stagnating growth in Europe, as subsidies were phased out or reduced in several major markets,” the report explains.

America may end government support

In America, “growth in electric car sales slowed down significantly in 2024, increasing by just 10% compared to 40% in 2023,” the report says. “In spite of this, electric car sales did boost the overall car market, as sales of conventional cars stagnated.”

With a new presidential administration and Republicans in control of Congress, government support for a domestic EV industry is drying up. The White House has already paused funds for new chargers. A proposal in Congress now would end the $7,500 EV tax rebate program that helps Americans buy certain domestically produced EVs.

What happens if the U.S. goes one way while the outside world goes another?
American automakers have long had global ambitions, and routinely sell cars on most continents. But, globally, they are losing market share to Chinese automakers. They may be resigned to it.

InsideEVs notes that, on a recent quarterly earnings call, Ford

CEO Jim Farley told investors that politicians “want a company like Ford that bet on America to win in this next era of the automotive industry that increasingly looks like a regional business.”

The statement stood out, as Ford’s Chinese competitors continue to expand their reach worldwide quickly. They do not see the auto industry as a regional business.

U.S. laws currently exclude Chinese automakers, such as BYD,BYDD -4.19%, from the American market, but even industry insiders don’t expect that firewall to last forever.

Also on MarketWatch: Let’s make America great in technology again — because it’s losing out to China

In a recent survey, consultancy Kerrigan Advisors found that 76% of auto industry executives agreed that Chinese automakers “will eventually enter the U.S. market.”