Volvo Cars, which aims for EVs to account for half its sales volume by mid-decade and to sell only electric cars by 2030, said the growth in demand for its premium brand was stronger than that of mass-market rivals.

"We have much more pricing power and people have got more disposable income so they can afford it if they want to drive an EV," Rowan said.

The Volvo Cars CEO said that, in contrast to others, he saw good growth globally for electric cars, with an particular strong demand in Europe.

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(Reporting by Divya Chowdhury in Davos and Savio Shetty in Mumbai, writing by Marie Mannes, editing by Stine Jacobsen and Terje Solsvik)