Chinese automobile sales increased 2.45% in 2011

Gasgoo.com (Shanghai January 13) - Automobile sales in China grew 2.45 percent in 2011, Caijing reported today. The figures come from the most recent statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, which show that a total of 18.51 million vehicles were sold in the country. The growth rates, albeit positive, were the lowest the Chinese market has seen in 13 years. Meanwhile, total automobile production numbers for the year reached 18.42 million units, equivalent to a slight year-on-year increase of just under one percent.

According to CAAM Deputy Secretary Zhu Yiping, monthly sales in the latter half of the year fell, with the only noticeable increases appearing in August and September. Mr. Zhu pointed out that the withdrawal of certain economic stimulus policies was a key factor in the drop in sales.

The CAAM statistics show that passenger automobile sales grew 5.19 percent in 2011, with the SUV segment increasing especially quickly. A total of 14.47 million passenger vehicles were sold during the year. Monthly growth rates among passenger vehicles exceeded the industry average for every month besides February.

Commercial vehicle sales, however, decreased 6.31 percent from 2010, with only 4.03 million units sold this year. Meanwhile, 3.93 million commercial vehicles were manufactured during 2011, decreasing 9.94 percent from the previous year.