Electric vehicles hit record two-thirds of China car sales in September as petrol demand collapses

New-energy vehicles made up a record 67% of new passenger-car sales in China in September, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association cited by Carbon Brief, as surging petrol prices linked to the Hormuz crisis accelerated a shift away from combustion engines.

Sales of fuel-only cars fell 43% year-on-year in September and 31% in the first nine months of 2026. Plug-in hybrid sales dropped 36% year-on-year in September and 26% over the same nine-month period. Battery electric vehicle sales declined by a more modest 8.5% in September and 4% in 2026 to date. NEV sales overall fell 17% in September and 13% in 2026 to date, even as their share of the market rose to a record high.

The NEV share of sales has climbed from 6% in 2020 to 58% in 2026 to date. Overall passenger-car retail sales fell 28% year-on-year in September.

Carbon Brief cited one analyst who said China's growing EV fleet had offset demand for 143 million barrels of oil since the start of the Hormuz crisis. A second analyst said the crisis was "reinforcing China's electrification of road transport."

NEV exports more than doubled in 2026 to date from a year earlier as domestic sales slowed. Sales of combustion-engine cars in China peaked in 2017 and have been declining since, the data shows.