Disappointing growth in passenger car market
May 15, 2017 Category Automotive, Weekly
China’s passenger car market in April continued to show lackluster performance seen in the first quarter, further denting the confidence of automotive industry players. Sales of sedans, SUVs, MPVs and minivans totaled 1.69 million units in the month, a 1.% fall from the same month last year, statistics from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed. Sales so far this year totaled 7.27 million, a 1.4% dip year-on-year. The fall could have been steeper without SUVs, whose sales grew 17.2% in the same period. It was the only growing segment in the first four months of the year, while other segments fell, ranging from 8.1% to 32.3%. The poor sales have forced the Association to cut its estimate of the year’s growth to 5% year-on-year from 6.5% at the end of last year. In contrast, the passenger car market in 2016 saw 18% growth year-on-year. “It is known to every one that the tax incentive is having its impact on the market. We had expected car sales to return to a reasonable level after the first quarter, but unfortunately they did not,” Cui Dongshu, CPCA Secretary General said. He added that growing interest in the property market, especially in smaller cities, is one factor to blame for this. “Everyone believes house prices are rising and it is already a pattern that people buy houses before they buy cars.” Yale Zhang, Managing Director of consulting firm Automotive Foresight, said some potential buyers may have wanted to see what automakers would offer at the Shanghai Auto Show before making a purchasing decision, the China Daily reports.
General Motors Co said sales of GM-brand vehicles by the company and its Chinese partners slipped 1.9% in April from a year earlier to 272,770. Deliveries of SUVs, minivans and luxury cars rose 14%. Ford Motor Co said sales grew 11% to almost 94,000, with sales of its luxury Lincoln brand nearly doubling to 4,500. Nissan’s sales rose 9.5% to 105,324 vehicles. Toyota’s sales grew 7.2% to 108,300 in China. BMW’s sales, including Mini and Rolls-Royce brands, jumped 12.4% to 142,958.
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