Electric and hybrid vehicles accounted for 16% of passenger car sales in Brazil for the first time in the first half of 2026, according to the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT Brasil). Their combined share nearly doubled in one year, rising from 8.7% in the first half of 2025, and marked the first time the segment surpassed 10% of the Brazilian market. In 2022, the three technologies analyzed in the study, battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), and conventional hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), accounted for less than 2% of sales.

Battery electric vehicles recorded the strongest growth. BEV sales rose from 30,000 units in the first half of 2025 to 90,000 in the same period of 2026, an increase of 196%. Among plug-in hybrids, sales climbed 80%, from 32,000 to 76,000 units. Over the same period, the overall light vehicle market grew 20%, from 1.1 million to 1.4 million units.

The expansion of vehicle electrification has been marked by a high concentration of sales among a small number of manufacturers. BYD accounted for 64% of battery electric vehicles and 54% of plug-in hybrids sold in Brazil in the first half of 2026. In the BEV market, Volvo-Geely ranked second, with a 20% share of sales. Among PHEVs, GWM accounted for 19%, followed by Chery with 10%. In the conventional hybrid segment, Toyota held a 52% share of sales.

The figures also show that the composition of sales in this growing segment has favored newer market entrants over established automakers in Brazil. Among the leading brands in the combustion-engine vehicle market, Stellantis, Volkswagen, GM, and Hyundai-Kia were the four largest sellers of light vehicles in the first half of the year. Of these, only GM held a significant share of the BEV and PHEV markets, at 3.6%.

Among automakers with a stronger presence in newer vehicle technologies, China’s BYD stands out for the concentration of its portfolio. The automaker overtook Toyota to become Brazil’s fifth-largest seller of light vehicles overall, with a portfolio composed entirely of BEVs and PHEVs in the first half of the year. Geely Group and newcomer Leapmotor also recorded 100% of their sales in these two categories. GWM and GAC generated 48% and 44% of their sales, respectively, from BEVs and PHEVs, while the share for Chery stood at 15%.

A Shift in Brazil’s Import and Export Patterns

Alongside the shift in the composition of the domestic market, import patterns have also changed. Since 2023, registrations of imported vehicles have exceeded exports, with the exception of the first half of 2025. BEVs and PHEVs accounted for 70% of light vehicle imports in the first half of 2026, up from 56% in the same period of 2024. According to the ICCT, the peak in import volumes in 2026 exceeded the volume of imported vehicle registrations, potentially reflecting the increase in import duties scheduled for July. This scenario may have encouraged automakers to bring purchases forward.

In the first half of 2026, Brazilian light vehicle exports totaled US$2.5 billion, down 14% from the same period in 2025. The decline was driven mainly by lower exports to Argentina, one of Brazil’s main export destinations alongside Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay.