BERLIN - Global sales of new all-electric vehicles more than doubled from two million units in 2020 to 4.5 million units in 2021, according to a study published by the auditing and consulting services company PwC Strategy& (Germany) on Tuesday.

"More and more automakers see pure electric vehicles as the future," said Felix Kuhnert, partner and automotive leader at PwC Germany.

China was by far the biggest market for new battery electric vehicles (BEVs). It accounted for 2.9 million unit sales in 2021, up 172 percent compared to 2020, according to the study, which analyzed registration figures in major markets worldwide.

BEV registrations in Europe's five largest markets grew by 72.4 percent year-on-year and reached 800,000 in 2021, according to the study.

The U.S. market for all-electric vehicles grew to almost 400,000 units and was "showing promising signs of growth" as BEV sales there were up 62 percent year-on-year. Sales were particularly driven by Tesla's Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, according to the study.

"Only one in three all-electric vehicles sold in China, Europe or the U.S. carries a European brand," Kuhnert said, adding that on average the Asian car manufacturers have weathered the global chip shortage better than their European competitors.