China's passenger car wholesale volume hits new high in October 2024

Beijing (Gasgoo)- In October 2024, China's retail sales of passenger vehicles reached 2.261 million units, reflecting an 11.3% increase over the previous year and a 7.2% rise from September, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association.

In the first ten months of this year, China's passenger vehicle retail sales totaled 17.835 million units, achieving a 3.2% growth over the year-ago period.

Specifically, China’s conventional oil-fueled vehicle retail sales were 1.066 million units in the past month, marking a 16.1% decline compared to last year but an 8.1% month-on-month increase. From January to October this year, the country’s retail sales of conventional oil-fueled vehicles hit 9.508 million units, down 16% year-on-year.

China's retail penetration rate of new energy passenger vehicles (NEPVs) in October stood at 52.9%.

For clarity, the passenger vehicles hereby refer to cars, MPVs, and SUVs locally produced on the Chinese Mainland.

Currently, all provinces in China have implemented vehicle trade-in subsidies and various strong measures to boost car purchases. These policies, offering substantial per-unit subsidies, have spurred a new wave of market growth. With the national vehicle scrappage policy and local trade-in incentives driving demand in October, along with the National Day holiday boost, the market saw strong growth, reinforcing the "Silver September, Golden October" sales effect.

The national scrappage subsidy offers differentiated incentives: NEPV buyers receive a 20,000-yuan subsidy, while those purchasing fuel vehicles with engine displacements of up to 2.0 liters receive 15,000 yuan. With an additional 5,000-yuan advantage for NEPVs in the scrappage policy and generally higher subsidies for NEPVs in local trade-in schemes, many scrappage and trade-in customers are opting for new energy vehicles, notably boosting the entry-level battery-electric vehicle (BEV) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) markets.

China's wholly-owned passenger vehicle brands sold 1.48 million vehicles in October, representing a 32% surge over last year and an 11% rise over the previous month. The domestic retail market share for these brands was 65.7% in the past month, up 10.1 percentage points from the previous year. In the meantime, wholesale market share for China's self-owned vehicle brands hit 69.9%, indicating an increase of 10 percentage points from the prior year.

Mainstream joint-venture brands saw retail sales of 570,000 passenger vehicles in October, down 17% compared to the same month last year but up 8% month-on-month. German brands nabbed 15.8% of the retail market, down 2.3 percentage points from a year ago, while Japanese brands held a 12.9% share, down 4.8 percentage points year-on-year. American brands' retail market share was 4% in the past month, indicating a 2.1 percentage-point year-on-year decline.

Luxury passenger vehicle retail sales in October totaled 210,000 units, down 7% from a year earlier and 15% from September, with a market share of 9.2%, which dipped 4 percentage points year over year.

In October, automakers in China wholesaled 2.732 million units of passenger cars, posting an 11.5% growth compared to last year and a 9.1% increase month-on-month, setting a new monthly record.

Cumulative wholesale volumes reached 21.176 million vehicles in the first ten months of this year, representing a 4.4% year-on-year increase.

In October, China’s self-owned brands led with 1.91 million vehicles wholesaled, which jumped 30% from a year earlier and 13% from the previous month. Mainstream joint-venture brands’ wholesale volume reached 570,000 vehicles, down 20% year-on-year but up 7% month-on-month. Luxury passenger vehicle wholesale volume reached 250,000 units in the past month, down 5% compared to last year and 11% from September.

Monthly performance among major auto manufacturers was mixed, with strong showings from BYD, Chery, Geely, Volkswagen, and Changan brands. Eight automakers achieved monthly passenger car wholesales of over 100,000 units (up from five in September and seven in the same period last year), accounting for 60% of the total market.

Overall, China's auto exports continued robust growth this year. CPCA's data indicates a monthly passenger vehicle export volume (including CKD) totaling 441,000 units in October 2024, representing a 13% year-on-year increase and 2% month-on-month growth. Year-to-date passenger vehicle exports reached 3.991 million units, reflecting a 30% jump over last year. NEPVs comprised 27.1% of the country's total exports in October.