China surpasses US auto market in H1 sales
- Source: Ce.cn
- [08:29 July 10 2009]
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Analysts expect China's sales this year to top 10 million vehicles, while one Chinese industry group says the total could exceed 11 million.
By contrast, analysts say US sales in June, when adjusted for seasonal variations and multiplied to produce an annual rate, were the equivalent of 9.7 million vehicles for 2009. That is down sharply from the 2007 peak of 16 million vehicles sold.
Commercial vehicles such as trucks and buses are a bigger share of sales in China than in the United States or Japan. Some observers say that makes comparing figures from the three markets misleading.
In 2008, Chinese sales included 6.8 million passenger cars and 2.6 million commercial vehicles, according to the CAAM.
General Motors Corp. said its China sales in the first half soared 38 percent from a year earlier, while GM's US operations were forced to obtain government aid and reorganize under bankruptcy court protection.
Ford Motor Co. said its first-half China sales were up 14 percent.
"The government took a series of policies in the first half of the year to promote the development of the auto industry," the industry association said. "Auto sales and production pulled out of their trough to show a good development trend."
