Chinese car sales have recorded a 6-month increase, jumping back 12.8% in September as the world's largest vehicle market recovers from its lows during the lockdown as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak.
"Golden September, Silver October", is a slogan that indicates a high selling point for this industry, with consumers trying to make a purchase after months of not visiting the car showroom.
According to the China Automobile Manufacturers Association (CAAM), sales have reached 2.57 million vehicles last month but are still down 6.9% for the year to 17.12 million vehicles.
Haitong International analyst Shi Ji said growth momentum had extended to October Golden Week, as retail sales exceeded traders' expectations.
Beijing automatic exhibitions, promotional events, and new policies have been introduced by the district government to support the sector to help sales growth in September.
As a result, sales of passenger vehicles increased by 8% in September. Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd, Great Wall Motor Co Ltd, and Toyota Motor Corp. are among the companies that recorded double-digit growth.
In addition, the new energy vehicle (NEV) performed well with sales soaring 67.7% to 138,000 for the third consecutive profit. For all intents and purposes, NEVs include electric vehicles, petrol-plug hybrid electric vehicles, and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.
NEV manufacturing companies such as Nio Inc and Xpeng Inc which are Chinese suppliers as well as foreign companies such as US Tesla Inc have expanded their manufacturing capacity in China where the government aggressively promotes environmentally friendly vehicles to reduce air pollution.
Tesla today lowered the price of the Model S sedan by about 4% in the United States as well as other major markets such as China. Tesla also reduced the starting price of the Chinese-made Model 3 sedan this month by about 8% to 249,900 yuan.
For trucks and other commercial vehicles, which account for about a quarter of the overall market, sales jumped 40% in September, driven by government investment in infrastructure.
