Chinese car sales fall for fifth straight month

Passenger vehicle sales in China fell in August for the fifth straight month, industry data showed on Monday, though sales of all-electric and plug-in hybrid models rose, helped by subsidies for drivers trading in more polluting vehicles.

Sales fell 1.1 per cent from the same month a year earlier to 1.92 million vehicles, data from the China Passenger Car Association showed. That compared with a 3.1 per cent decline in July.

New energy vehicle (NEV) sales, however, jumped 43.2 per cent to account for a record 53.5 per cent of total car sales, as local EV champion BYD set a sales record and US rival Tesla had its best month of 2024.

Car exports increased 24 per cent after a 20 per cent rise in July.

The numbers reflected waning consumer confidence, with first-time car purchases lagging behind trade-ins, the association said last week.

Drivers are eligible for a cash subsidy of as much as 20,000 yuan ($2,823) when trading in petrol-powered cars to buy NEVs, while those trading in petrol-powered cars for smaller-engine alternatives are entitled to up to 15,000 yuan.

In line with a downshift in consumer spending, local EV majors Nio and Xpeng launched lower-priced brands earlier this year.

Rising EV and plug-in hybrid sales have barely helped with challenges at dealerships that are battling price falls.

More than half of dealerships suffered a loss in January-June, with the ratio up 7.3 percentage points from a year prior, data from the China Automobile Dealers Association showed.

Money-losing China Grand Automotive Services, the second-largest dealership, was delisted from the Shanghai bourse in August after its stock traded below par value for 20 consecutive days.