BEIJING, July 8-- About 3.13 million new energy vehicles (NEVs) were newly registered in China in the first half of this year, an increase of 41.6 percent year on year, hitting a record high, according to statistics released by the Ministry of Public Security on Saturday.

This brings the total number of registered NEVs in the country to 16.2 million as of the end of June, accounting for 4.9 percent of the total number of cars.

As per statistics, 16.88 million motor vehicles were registered in China in the first half of 2023, bringing the national motor vehicle ownership to 426 million units by the end of June. Of the newly registered motor vehicles, 11.75 million were cars. The total number of cars in the country rose to 328 million.

The number of licensed motor vehicle drivers stood at 513 million by the end of June, of which 475 million were car drivers, the ministry said. In the first half of 2023, 11.91 million people obtained their driver's licenses.

Altogether 88 Chinese cities had more than 1 million cars each by the end of June, seven more compared with the same period last year. The number of cars in Beijing and Chengdu both exceeded 6 million.