China Car Sales to See Historic Plunge in First Months of 2020
- Sales in January-February to drop a record 25%-30%: China PCA
- Full-year sales may fall 5%, the third straight annual decline
A man rides a bike through an almost empty Nanjing Road in Shanghai.
Photographer: Qilai Shen/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
China’s car sales are likely to slump the most on record in the first two months of 2020 as the coronavirus keeps buyers away from showrooms, intensifying headwinds for automakers in the world’s biggest market.
Sales are set to fall by 25% to 30% in the January-February period, according to a preliminary forecast by Cui Dongshu, secretary general of China Passenger Car Association. The virus outbreak will likely drag down China’s full-year auto sales by as much as 5%, Cui said Tuesday.