Swedish luxury vehicles manufacturer Volvo enjoyed a remarkable growth in December 2023, with global sales exceeding 76,000 units. However, plug-in electric car sales decreased for the second month in a row. According to data shared by the Swedish manufacturer, Volvo’s global car sales increased 4.6 per cent to settle at 76,015 units in December 2023. Full-year sales reached 708,716 units, marking a year-over-year surge of 15 per cent.

However, amidst the aforementioned increase in global car sales, the automaker faced a dip in plug-in electric car sales for the second consecutive month in December. With only 28,461 units of plug-in cars sold worldwide, the company suffered a decline of 11 per cent year-over-year. It is worth noting here that the decline was attributed to the high base set by the company in November and December 2022.

In spite of the decline in the plug-in car sales, a noteworthy development was the introduction of the all-new Volvo EX30, which attracted 606 buyers in the month of December alone. Anticipating this model’s European debut sometime in 2025, eyes are on the company’s Chinese factory’s production capacity.

When we break down the December figures, we find that battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) accounted for 12,270 and 16,191 units, respectively, in the total 28,461 Volvo Recharge sales. Even after the decline, Recharge cars still held a noteworthy 37.4 per cent share of the company’s overall sales.

When it comes to the Q4 sales, Volvo sold 72,752 plug-in electric cars worldwide, representing a 5.2 per cent decline from the corresponding quarter of last year. However, the entire year exhibited a strong performance, with plug-in car sales exceeding 265,000 units, constituting a remarkable 30 per cent year-over-year growth and representing 37.5 per cent of total sales volume.

The Volvo XC40 Recharge emerged as the best-selling all-electric model, with a total of 7,812 units sold in December and 75,666 in the entire last year. Following closely, the Volvo C40 Recharge achieved 3,852 sales in December and 37,114 throughout the year.

The year of 2023 served as a foundation for Volvo’s future growth and innovation in the EV landscape. Looking ahead, the recent launch of the all-new Volvo EX90 luxury SUV and the impending roll out of the Volvo EM90 underscore the Swedish brand’s commitment to a diverse and expanding electric lineup.