Policies igniting rigid demand for automobiles
- Source: CCTV.com
- [16:08 July 30 2009]
- Comments
"Thanks to a package of government policies to revitalize the automobile market, the automobile market in China continued to grow rapidly in the first half of 2009, becoming a highlight in the international automobile market," said Dr. Winfried Vahland, President and CEO of Volkswagen Group (China), adding that Volkswagen Group (China) and the other two joint ventures--Shanghai Volkswagen and FAW-Volkswagen have delivered a total of 652,200 automobiles to customers in the first half, representing a growth of 22.7 percent year on year.
Klaus Maier, President and CEO of Mercedes-Benz (China) Ltd. has felt the same growth in China's automobile market. In the first half, sales volume of Mercedes-Benz in Chinese mainland achieved six-month consecutive growth. 27,000 automobiles were sold, representing a growth of 50 percent year on year.
In June alone, Mercedes-Benz sold more than 5,100 automobiles, a growth of 52 percent year on year. Maier said, "The rapid growth of 50 percent is not only a highlight in the Mercedes–Benz’s global market, but also indicates that Mercedes–Benz has taken the lead in the industry and among its rivals in the luxury automobile market."
The excellent market performance of Volkswagen and Mercedes–Benz was just a fraction of the overall growth in China's automobile markets that bucked market trends in the first half of 2009. Statistics from the Association of Automobile Manufacturers of China show that China's automobile sales were 6.11 million from January to June, representing a growth of 17.69 percent year on year and surpassing the United States to become the world's largest auto market. In particular, sales of passenger cars reached 4.53 million, a growth of 25.62 percent year on year.
