Global sales of fully electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles rose by a quarter last year to over 17 million cars, helped by a fourth consecutive month of record sales in December as China continued to grow and Europe stabilised,

While China and North America maintained their robust electric vehicle sales growth, European EV sales floundered, as Germany faces mounting political and economic changes.

Sales of all types of electric vehicles rose more than 40% in China last year, while those of gasoline-powered automobiles plunged.