China imports 65,000 cars in Q1, down 37%

Shanghai, May 4 (Gasgoo.com) In the first quarter of 2009, China imported 65,000 vehicles, down 37% from a year earlier, xinhuanet.com reported today. As China's auto market is recovering, the import is expected to rally in the second quarter, but the full-year auto import will see slight fall.

The number plate registration of imported cars hit 75,600 units in the first three months, up 20.5% year on year. The sales of imported cars also grew rapidly during that period. Meanwhile, the import of SUVs exceeded that of sedans, but high-emission vehicles were less imported.

An industry official said that the high inventories from last year and the market slump in the fourth quarter of 2008 had led to the decline in the first quarter's auto import this year. The import volume had been scaled down according to the stockpiles and market change.

The rise in imported car registration in the first quarter is attributed to four factors: 1. the sales of imported cars in last year's first quarter were low due to the snowstorms; 2. government's stimulus plans boosted consumer confidence this year; 3. SUV models with engines below 3.0 liters had more choices; 4. the market demand began to recover.

The government's sustainable incentives and consumers' confidence recovery will continue to boost China's market of imported cars in the second quarter of this year, but the full-year registration volume is unlikely to be higher than last year's and the full-year auto import will fall slightly from 2008, experts said.