According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers
(CAAM), vehicle sales in China went up 19.5% to 2.84 million
units in Jan-Feb from 2.37 million units a year ago. The increase
in sales was much higher than last year. In 2012, sales grew 4.3%
to 19.3 million vehicles.
However, sales fell 13.6% in Feb due to the Lunar New Year
holidays. However, strong sales by
Ford Motor Co.
(
F
) and Hyundai Motor Co. lifted sales in the world's biggest
market during the period. Sales of vehicles, including buses and
trucks, escalated 15% to 3.39 million units in the first two
months of the year, according to the CAAM.
Ford reported a 46% rise in sales to 105,209 vehicles while
Hyundai reported more than 40% increase in sales to 177,000
vehicles in the period.
General Motors Company
(
GM
) and its Chinese joint venture partners sold 525,835 vehicles in
the period, up 7.9% from Jan-Feb 2012.
Sales of Japanese brands, including
Toyota Motor Corp.
(
TM
),
Nissan Motor Co.
(
NSANY
) and
Honda Motor Co.
(
HMC
), hampered due to the political conflict between Beijing and
Tokyo over disputed islands in the East China Sea. According to
the CAAM, sales of Japanese passenger cars dipped 17.1%
year-over-year in Jan-Feb this year.
Sales of
Volkswagen AG
's (
VLKAY
) Audi, improved 16% in the period. Audi is the top-selling
luxury brand in China. However,
Daimler AG
's (
DDAIF
) Mercedes-Benz posted a 39% decline in sales to 26,829 vehicles
during the period under study.
According to the CAAM, auto sales in China are expected to rise
7% to more than 20 million vehicles in 2013, led by strong demand
for passenger vehicles and economic recovery. The association
believes SUVs will remain the fastest- growing segment in the
year while commercial vehicles will record a moderate gain in
sales.
However, the Chinese government is concerned about rising air
pollution in the country due to the ever increasing vehicles on
the road. As a result, China's State Council announced a stricter
standard for auto fuel recently, which will be promoted
nationwide by 2017. These steps may damage the health of the auto
industry in China.
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NISSAN ADR (NSANY): Free Stock Analysis
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