Will COVID-19 Slow Down Electric Vehicle Revolution?

While 2020 was supposed to fast-track the decade of EV revolution, the pandemic has slowed down its pace, at least for the near term. Delayed production and damping consumer confidence coupled with low oil prices are clearly going to be deterrents for EV uptake. OEMs are clearly in trouble as stock prices crash, supply chain disrupts and raw material price increase.

As lockdown lifts in the largest market, China has already taken the path to resilience. Continued stringent CO2 emission targets is expected to support faster recovery in EU. With an FY20 drop of ~30%, we expect the longer-term demand to remain intact as subsidies strengthen, battery prices tumble and consumer confidence reinstates.