Asia Tech Wire (Aug 12) -- Volkswagen, Hyundai, BYD and other automakers are pouring into the fast-growing Brazilian electric vehicle market.

From January to July this year, Brazil had 94,616 electric vehicle registrations, exceeding the 2023 figure of 93,927 units. Among them, battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for 38%, and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) accounted for 31.7%.

The Brazilian Electric Vehicle Association (ABVE) expects total electric vehicle sales in Brazil to exceed 150,000 units this year.

In 2023, Brazil's automobile production and sales have both exceeded 2.3 million units, becoming the No. 1 automobile market in South America and the sixth largest in the world.

Against the backdrop of a slowing growth rate of electrification in the global automotive market, Brazil is one of the few large markets still maintaining high growth rates.

Starting this year, in order to capitalize on Brazil's growing EV market, General Motors, Volkswagen, Hyundai, Toyota and others have announced one after another their investments in Brazil, with each of them above $1 billion.

Stellantis, the world's fourth-largest automaker, plans to invest 30 billion reais ($6.07 billion) in Brazil by 2030, the largest investment among these car companies.

Chinese automakers are also competing for the Brazilian market. In the first half of this year, vehicle exports from China to Brazil amounted to 171,000 units, a year-on-year increase of up to 488%.

Brazil has also become the third largest export destination country for Chinese cars, after Russia and Mexico.

There are three main Chinese auto brands in the Brazilian market, namely Chery Auto, BYD and Great Wall Motor.