Beijing's crackdown on EV subsidy fraud had little impact on the market as combined sales of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids surged 191 percent year on year in April to 31,772 vehicles.

 

EV deliveries soared 244 percent to 23,908 vehicles while plug-in hybrid deliveries jumped 98 percent to 7,864 vehicles, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

 

In the first four months, sales of EVs and plug-in hybrids totaled 90,529 vehicles, up 131 percent from the same period last year. For the year, automakers in China delivered 66,444 EVs and 24,085 plug-in hybrids.

 

The sharp rise in deliveries comes amid media reports that Chinese automakers improperly obtained EV subsidies by exaggerating sales and using sub-standard parts. Beijing started a probe into the claims in January. The government has yet to release results of the investigation.