World’s Largest Car Market Reports Second Straight Annual Decline
- World’s biggest auto market mired in slump as economy cools
- Industry group says a recovery in sales is likely in 2020
Workers set up display stands a day before the opening of the Shanghai Auto Show.
Photographer: Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images
This article is for subscribers only.
Car sales in China continued to fall in December, capping a second straight annual drop, though a slowing pace of declines suggests the world’s biggest market may be close to a bottom.
Sales of sedans, sport utility vehicles, minivans and multipurpose vehicles fell 3.6% last month from a year earlier to 2.17 million units, the China Passenger Car Association said Thursday. The drop was the 18th in the past 19 months, with the only gain coming last June when dealers offered large discounts to clear inventory.