Well-known Chinese news site Sina recently reported that the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) just released its November sales numbers for the Chinese domestic automobile market. The report showed that 2.17 million automobiles were sold in November, which is the largest decline in six years (since January 2012), representing a 16.1 percent drop. However, the January 2012 decline was merely a reflection of the Chinese New Year’s impact that year. Looking back a few months, the Chinese automobile market has been declining in each of the past consecutive months. Since September, the decline has been around 12 percent per month. This is indicative of the worst market shrinkage since 1990. Unless December data shows a miracle, CAAM is projecting the first annual decline in over 20 years. The Deputy Director of CAAM explained that the decreasing income of middle and low class consumers was the main cause of the sharp decline. Government policy changes also played a role. International auto manufacturers will also see challenges in the Chinese market.
Source: Sina, December 11, 2018
http://auto.sina.com.cn/news/hy/2018-12-11/detail-ihmutuec8177963.shtml