The impact of COVID-19 on the market prospects of electric passenger cars

Abstract

The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic has caused changes worldwide in adimension that has not been seen since the Second World War. This pandemicand the measures taken to moderate the negative consequences have affectedalmost all aspects of our life. Transport has been one of the most affected sec-tors. In general, the global car market is very sensitive to macroeconomic con-ditions. This applies especially to electric vehicles, which are still verydependent on financial support measures. A combination of travel restrictions,unemployment, and low oil prices could have significant impact on electricvehicles. This paper provides an overview of the development of electric vehi-cles and corresponding policies covering the period before and during theCOVID crisis. Policy framework and the future development of the annualgross domestic product per capita have a significant impact on diffusion of bat-tery electric vehicles. However, since the crisis is still ongoing, the full impactof the COVID crisis on mobility is still to be seen but the findings so far showrather favorable signs for electric mobility.