JAKARTA - Demand for electric vehicles in a number of Asian countries has jumped sharply in line with rising global oil prices. At a BYD dealer in the Manila financial district, the surge in consumer interest is palpable.
Local sales staff, Matthew Dominique Poh, even admitted that orders in the last two weeks were equivalent to one month of sales. "Customers are replacing their units with electric vehicles due to rising oil prices," said Poh, who has worked for seven months at the dealership.
A similar phenomenon occurred in Hanoi, Vietnam. Nguyen Hoang Tu Anh revealed that his VinFast showroom experienced a fourfold increase in visits since the Iran conflict broke out. This condition encourages the addition of sales personnel, as well as generating sales of 250 electric car units in just three weeks.
Launching the Japan Times, Wednesday, March 25, the figure is equivalent to more than 80 units per week, double the average sales throughout 2025. Interest in switching to electric vehicles also comes from consumers.
"Switching to electric vehicles will help us save money significantly," said Lai The Manh Linh, a 41-year-old employee of the telecommunications company.
He exchanged a gasoline-powered Toyota Vios for an electric VinFast 5 to support daily mobility of 60 to 70 kilometers. Although official March sales data have not been released, early indications show Asian electric vehicle manufacturers such as China's BYD and Vietnam's VinFast are beginning to reap the benefits of soaring crude oil prices.
This impact is felt strongly in the Asia Pacific region, which has absorbed about 80 percent of the oil supply crossing the Strait of Hormuz before the route was disrupted by the conflict. "Higher oil prices always help the transition to electric vehicles. It creates economic incentives to accelerate the green transition," said Head of Economist at the Asian Development Bank, Albert Park.
According to BloombergNEF, global adoption of electric vehicles has helped reduce oil consumption by the equivalent of 2.3 million barrels per day last year. However, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Joanna Chen believes that this surge in interest is not necessarily sustainable without adequate infrastructure support.
"Affordability of prices and charging are always the two biggest factors that hinder the adoption of electric vehicles," he said. He added that the cost of ownership could potentially become more balanced if oil prices continue to rise.
Prior to the oil price turmoil, electric vehicle penetration in Asia had actually shown a positive trend, although not evenly. In China, electric cars and plug-in hybrids now account for more than half of total vehicle sales, driven by aggressive government policies in developing new energy industries.
Meanwhile, Southeast Asian countries recorded an adoption rate of around 40 percent, surpassing the UK and Europe, according to think tank Ember. "If oil prices remain at current levels or rise further, we expect a significant increase in EV demand," said Surapong Paisitpatnapong of the Federation of Thai Industries.
Previously, his party was pessimistic about the demand for EVs in 2026 due to reduced government subsidies. A number of countries have even begun to take policy measures. The Lao government, for example, has cut the cost of registration and services for electric vehicles by up to 30 percent, while raising similar fees for gasoline-powered cars in an effort to respond to the surge in energy prices.
As the world's largest producer of electric vehicles, China is expected to be the biggest beneficiary. Data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers shows that exports of electric and plug-in hybrid cars in the first two months of this year have more than doubled compared to the same period last year, even before the conflict.
In addition to Chinese brands, global players such as Hyundai Motor, Nissan Motor, and Tesla are also in a strategic position to take advantage of this trend. However, a number of conventional automotive manufacturers are actually lagging behind. General Motors, Honda Motor, and Ford are reported to have started reducing their electrification ambitions, partly due to policy changes in the United States under President Donald Trump who revoked various incentives for electric vehicles.
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