Chinese luxury car market continues to grow

7. May 2019

Despite a generally weaker development of the Chinese car market, the segment of premium and luxury vehicles continues to grow. Consumer confidence remains at a high level and incomes continue to rise, tripling to 23 million households with more than $34,000 in monthly income by 2020. Due to the high demand, the most important manufacturers of luxury vehicles reported positive sales figures last November. Carlos Gomes, Chief Executive Officer of PSA Group China and Southeast Asia, said in an interview that despite a 2 percent decline in the overall Chinese car market, luxury vehicles continue to grow by 15 percent.

According to a report by the Chinese Automobile Manufacturers Association, overall sales fell 1.7 percent while luxury sedans grew 18.8 percent and premium SUVs 3.5 percent. Calculated in total units, in the price segment over 300,000 yuan (US $44,000) about 1.16 million vehicles were sold last year. All major manufacturers of luxury vehicles, including Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi, reported positive figures in November.

Mercedes-Benz sold around 603,000 vehicles in the period from January to November 2018 and achieved growth of 11.7 percent. In a press statement last November, the German car manufacturer announced that together with its brand Smart, it is the first premium manufacturer in China to deliver more than 600,000 units in one year. BMW also grew at a double-digit rate, selling 577,000 vehicles in the first 11 months and achieving growth of 6.4 percent over the previous year. The Ingolstadt car maker Audi, which is part of the VW Group, was able to increase its sales by 13 percent. Particularly successful was the model A4L, a long version of the Limousine, which was developed specifically for China. In addition, Audi is planning a brand offensive with more than 10 new models by 2022, including the electric vehicle Audi Q2L e-tron, which will be offered exclusively on the Chinese market from 2019. You want to benefit from the growth in the premium automotive segment and export your products to China? You need the compulsory  China Compulsory Certification (CCC), for which we would be pleased to advise you.

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