The rise in petrol prices due to the war in Iran may accelerate the transition of consumers to electric vehicles and hybrids, Reuters writes. The price increase is already causing concern among automakers, dealers and car owners.
According to the UK government, average petrol prices have risen by 7%, in the EU by 8%, and in the US by 27% since the end of February. History shows that an oil market shock can change consumer behaviour: the 1970s energy crisis forced Americans to choose smaller cars, which benefited Japanese manufacturers.
However, experts say that a sharp rise in prices will not immediately change the behaviour of new car buyers, as this requires a long period of high prices or a psychological “threshold”.
Some consumers are already responding, although in the US, most buyers have not yet changed their habits, and the share of EV buyers has risen slightly to 7.7%.
In Europe, demand for electric vehicles is growing faster: last year they accounted for 19.5% of sales. In addition, some countries are returning tax incentives for EVs.
In Germany, traffic to EV dealers’ websites has increased by 40%, and a Carwow survey showed that almost half of Germans are ready to consider an electric car or hybrid due to rising fuel prices. Vietnamese manufacturer VinFast is also offering discounts to those switching from petrol cars due to fluctuating oil prices.
Analysts say that high fuel prices could slow down car sales in the US due to economic uncertainty and inflation concerns.
Read also: Global sales of electric vehicles fell again due to falling demand in China
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