Car sales fall for 17th straight month in China, as global market suffers
Chinese car sales fell for a 17th consecutive month in November, as electric and hybrid car demand contracted yet again.
Total automotive sales from the world’s biggest market fell 3.6 per cent compared to the same period last year, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).
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It comes after a four per cent drop in October and a 5.2 per cent drop in September.
Car sales in China contracted last year for the first time since the 1990s as economic growth slowed and its trade war with the US started to bite.
Local governments in China have accelerated changes to emissions rules this year, making it tougher to sell cars.
CAAM deputy secretary general Chan Shihua said this is the “biggest reason for this year’s sales plunge”.
He added that overall car production levels were now returning to normal and carmakers had boosted their product line-ups in the past few months.
Sales of new energy vehicles, which include hybrid, electric and hydrogen cars, fell 43.7 per cent, after a 45.6 per cent drop in October.
The NEV market had rocketed nearly 62 per cent last year, despite a broader automotive market contraction.
China has been a keen supporter of NEVs and has implemented sales quota requirements for automakers.
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But it cut subsidies this year and plans to phase them out after 2020 amid criticism that some firms have become overly reliant on the funds, making NEVs more costly and dampening demand.
“Next year there will be different NEV manufacturing quotas for carmakers. I think next year will also be an adjustment period and sales of new energy vehicle will be better than this year,” said Xu Haidong, assistant secretary general at CAAM.