Car passenger sales in China fell 78.5% YoY in February; NEVs production tumbled 77.4% over the year

According to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) data, the passenger car sales fell last month due to the outbreak of the epidemic Coronavirus. The retail sales of sedans, multi-purpose vehicles (MPVS), and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) totalled at 252,308 units in February, down 85.3 per cent from January and 78.5 per cent from the same period last year.

This sharp decline in February could also be attributed to the Lunar New Year holiday, noted the auto industry association.

The total sales in the first two months of 2020 stood at 1.97 million units, down 41 per cent from the corresponding period of the year last.

Production of new energy vehicles also shrank last month amidst the outbreak of the virus. Only 12,000 NEVs produced in China obtained qualification certificates in February, down 77.4 per cent year-on-year, according to SMM. Passenger vehicles accounted for 11,000 units or 94.7 per cent, while 300 were buses taking up to 2.9 per cent.  The rest 300 were special buses accounting for the remaining 2.5 per cent of the total.

In January, 48,000 NEVs had obtained qualification certificates, down 52.3 per cent over the year.

SMM also revealed a decline of 73.4 per cent year-on-year in the installation of 0.6GWh power batteries in February.

For 2020, the CPCA forecasts car sales growth to a negative of 8 per cent, instead of a positive 1 per cent estimated late last year.