The latest sales figures are out: A key data soars by 73.7%, and there may be a bigger explosion in April.
On April 9th, the latest data released by the Passenger Car Association showed that in March this year, the retail sales volume of China's passenger car market (broad - sense passenger cars) was approximately 1.67 million units, a year - on - year decrease of 15.2% and a month - on - month increase of 60.1%. In the first quarter of this year, the cumulative retail sales volume of the domestic passenger car market was approximately 4.272 million units, a year - on - year decrease of 17.6%.
Among them, in March, the retail volume of new energy passenger cars in China was approximately 848,000 units, a year - on - year decline of 14.4% and a month - on - month increase of 82.6%. In the first quarter, the cumulative retail sales volume of new energy passenger cars in China was approximately 1.908 million units, a year - on - year decline of 21.1%.
"The 17% negative growth in passenger car retail sales in the first quarter is a relatively serious problem. In fact, this is a continuation of the performance from the fourth quarter of last year. From the data trend, we can see that in the fourth quarter of last year, the overall automobile market was at a relatively low level, and it continued to be at a low level in the first quarter of this year, reflecting certain fluctuations in consumers' purchasing power and enthusiasm, and relatively high consumption pressure. Long - term support measures are needed to stabilize growth and effectively tap consumption potential." On April 9th, Cui Dongshu, the secretary - general of the Passenger Car Association, told a reporter from NBD.
Cui Dongshu predicted that this year, there will be a divergence between the growth rates of China's automobile exports and the domestic automobile market, and the domestic automobile consumption still needs long - term policies to support it.
Exports "Soar", Leading Automobile Enterprises Set New Records Collectively
The high - speed growth of passenger car exports became the biggest highlight of the passenger car market in March. According to the data of the Passenger Car Association, in that month, the export volume of China's passenger cars was approximately 699,000 units, a year - on - year increase of 73.7% and a month - on - month increase of 24.9%. In the first quarter of this year, the cumulative export volume was approximately 1.843 million units, a year - on - year increase of 61%.
Image source: Passenger Car Association
Leading automobile enterprises set new export records collectively, becoming the core engine driving the growth of passenger car exports. Among them, Geely Automobile exported 81,600 units in March, a year - on - year increase of 120%, and new energy products accounted for 64%. In the first quarter, the cumulative sales volume in the overseas market was approximately 203,000 units, a year - on - year increase of 126%.
The Chery Group exported 148,800 units in March, a year - on - year increase of 72%, setting a new monthly export record for Chinese automobile enterprises and breaking through the 100,000 - unit mark for 11 consecutive months. In the first quarter of this year, the Chery Group's cumulative exports reached 393,300 units, a year - on - year increase of 53.9%.
BYD exported approximately 120,000 new energy vehicles in March, a year - on - year increase of 65.2%. In the first quarter, the cumulative exports were approximately 319,800 units.
Changan Automobile's overseas sales exceeded 100,000 units for the first time in March, reaching 103,900 units, a month - on - month increase of 60%, setting a new historical high.
SAIC Group exported 121,300 complete vehicles in March, a year - on - year increase of 47.37%. In the first quarter, the cumulative exports were 324,900 units, a year - on - year increase of 48.34%. Self - owned brands such as MG and Roewe continued to gain momentum in the overseas market.
"The 'explosive growth' trend of passenger car exports in March is a further manifestation of the significant improvement in the competitiveness of Chinese self - owned brands and the role of international brand automobile enterprises in China relying on China's complete industrial advantages and playing the role of a world factory based in China. Therefore, not only self - owned passenger cars have excellent export performance, but also joint - venture brands and Tesla have outstanding export performance. In particular, the continuous enrichment of export products of Korean and Japanese enterprises has promoted the overall improvement of China's passenger car export structure. Both self - owned brands and joint - venture brands have achieved comprehensive growth in exports, and self - owned brands have even achieved synchronous growth in fuel - powered vehicles and new energy vehicles." Cui Dongshu said.
According to the data of the Passenger Car Association, in March, new energy passenger cars accounted for 50.2% of the total export volume, an increase of 14 percentage points compared with the same period. The export volume of self - owned brand passenger cars reached 606,000 units, a year - on - year increase of 76%. The export volume of joint - venture and luxury brand passenger cars was approximately 88,000 units, a year - on - year increase of 65%.
"In March, both the exports of fuel - powered vehicles and new energy vehicles in China reached new highs for the same period in history, which fully reflects the improvement of the overall competitiveness of China's automobile products and industry, especially in the global southern markets. Regions such as Southeast Asia and Central and South America have become important driving forces." Cui Dongshu told the reporter that currently, more domestic automobile enterprises regard the overseas market as an important development direction, pay equal attention to the domestic and overseas markets, and promote the effective expansion of their export business.
In addition, the significant improvement of China's transportation capacity is also one of the important factors for the "explosive growth" of automobile exports. In Cui Dongshu's view, China's automobile exports cover more than 200 countries and regions around the world. Many enterprises such as BYD and SAIC have built their own large - scale shipping fleets, with prominent advantages in the self - owned transportation capacity system, bringing multiple benefits such as low transportation costs, strong ship - schedule guarantees, and wide global route layouts. In March, there was a transportation crisis in the Middle East, and China's stable and efficient transportation capacity became even more prominent. Coupled with the relatively low usage cost of Chinese new energy vehicles, there has been a rush - buying boom in the overseas market, and a large number of new energy vehicles and fuel - powered vehicle products have been quickly transported to all parts of the world, supporting the continuous growth of automobile exports.
The Automobile Market in April is Expected to Usher in a Consumption - Upgrading Car - Buying Boom
Currently, the international oil price remains at a high level, and the relevant geopolitical situation is difficult to fully ease in the short term. Meanwhile, the recognition of Chinese automobile products in the international market continues to improve. The first - batch users have formed a good reputation, and the service and after - sales systems are constantly improving, gradually forming a positive cycle.
Based on this, Cui Dongshu believes that the high - speed growth of China's automobile exports is sustainable. "Previously, we predicted that China's automobile exports were expected to maintain a growth rate of over 20%. At present, the export volume in the first three months of this year has achieved an extremely high growth of 60%. It is expected that the strong growth trend of over 20% will still be maintained throughout the year." Cui Dongshu said.
It is worth noting that driven by the explosive growth of exports, in March, the year - on - year growth rate of China's passenger car wholesale was 13.4 percentage points higher than that of retail. The wholesale sales volume of national passenger car manufacturers reached 2.378 million units (narrow - sense passenger cars), a month - on - month increase of 56.6% and a year - on - year decrease of 1.6%. Among them, the wholesale sales volume of self - owned automobile enterprises was approximately 1.611 million units, a year - on - year increase of 2% and a month - on - month increase of 50%. The wholesale sales volume of mainstream joint - venture automobile enterprises was approximately 490,000 units, a year - on - year decrease of 10% and a month - on - month increase of 75%. The wholesale sales volume of luxury automobile enterprises was approximately 270,000 units, a year - on - year decrease of 3% and a month - on - month increase of 69%.
Image source: Passenger Car Association
Looking forward to April, Cui Dongshu believes that the production and sales of the automobile market will continue the slow recovery trend. This year, the policy of reducing and exempting the vehicle purchase tax for new energy vehicles has entered the phase of starting to decline, and the growth pressure in the first quarter has emerged. The domestic automobile market is restricted by consumer spending power and the shrinking market share of economy - class electric vehicles, and the overall growth is under pressure. Driven by the national and local consumption - promotion policies, the Beijing Auto Show, and the "May Day" travel boom, the automobile market in April is expected to usher in a consumption - upgrading car - buying boom.
"In the second quarter, the automobile market will gradually improve. We believe that the domestic passenger car market will achieve overall stability and positive growth in the second half of the year. Especially for the manufacturers' wholesale sales volume, it will basically return to positive growth in the second half of the year." Cui Dongshu said. In terms of the retail end, the domestic passenger car market may still face a slight negative - growth pressure in the second quarter and will gradually enter a stable state in the third quarter.
This article is from the WeChat official account "NBD Auto", author: Sun Tongtong. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.