What’s new: China’s car sales fell around 27% in February, as carmakers scaled back production during the eight-day Spring Festival holiday, according to an industry report.
Last month, 1.2 million vehicles were sold in the world’s largest auto market, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) published Monday.
The drop was largely due to a sales lull during the Lunar New Year holiday when manufacturers reduced production activity, CAAM said in a report accompanying the data. The holiday fell in January last year.
Sales of new-energy vehicles (NEVs) in the country fell some 10% to 395,000 units, according to the report.
Despite the sales contraction at home, China’s auto exports rose 14.7% year-on-year in February to 377,000 cars, which included 82,000 NEVs, 5.9% fewer than last year.
The background: The auto industry is a key driver for the Chinese economy. And the government is ramping up efforts to promote the development of the NEV sector, where local automakers are leading innovation instead of simply emulating overseas rivals.
Premier Li Qiang pledged to “consolidate and enhance” the country’s leading position in the smart connected NEV industry and boost domestic NEV sales with trade-in programs, in his government work report delivered to the National People’s Congress this month.
An August report by UBS Group AG predicted that Chinese automakers will almost double their global market share to 33% by the end of the decade thanks to their efforts to make more affordable, cheaper-to-produce electric cars.
Contact reporter Ding Yi (yiding@caixin.com) and editor Jonathan Breen (jonathanbreen@caixin.com)
