Mr. M
Tire Trailblazer
China surging in car market
Sales of 7.2 million units move country past Japan to make it the No. 2 vehicle market after the United States.
Joe McDonald / Associated Press
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007701120370
BEIJING -- China surged past Japan to become the world's No. 2 vehicle market after the United States last year as car purchases by newly affluent drivers jumped 37 percent, the Chinese auto industry association said Thursday.
The announcement highlighted China's lightning evolution from a "bicycle kingdom" into a major auto market where foreign producers are racing to open factories and target a growing urban middle class.
Struggling U.S. automakers General Motors and Ford have gotten a boost from double-digit sales growth in China and fledgling Chinese manufacturers are starting to export their own cars, trucks and SUVs.
"There's money here and people spend that money on cars," said Michael J. Dunne, vice president for Asia-Pacific for auto research firm J.D. Power and Associates.
China's overall vehicle sales, including trucks and buses, rose 25.1 percent to 7.2 million units last year, China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said. Passenger car sales rose to 3.8 million, it said.
Japan's total vehicle sales last year came to 5.7 million units, a slight decline from 2005, said the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association. U.S. car and truck sales totaled 16.5 million units last year, down a bit from 2005, according to Autodata Inc.
China could overtake the United States as the top car market some time after 2015, Dunne said.
Red-hot Chinese sales have brought relief to U.S. automakers, which have seen weak demand at home.
General Motors Corp.'s total sales in China last year rose 32 percent over 2005 to 876,747 vehicles. Ford Motor Co.'s sales of Ford, Lincoln, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo, rose 87 percent to 166,722 units.
Sales of 7.2 million units move country past Japan to make it the No. 2 vehicle market after the United States.
Joe McDonald / Associated Press
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007701120370
BEIJING -- China surged past Japan to become the world's No. 2 vehicle market after the United States last year as car purchases by newly affluent drivers jumped 37 percent, the Chinese auto industry association said Thursday.
The announcement highlighted China's lightning evolution from a "bicycle kingdom" into a major auto market where foreign producers are racing to open factories and target a growing urban middle class.
Struggling U.S. automakers General Motors and Ford have gotten a boost from double-digit sales growth in China and fledgling Chinese manufacturers are starting to export their own cars, trucks and SUVs.
"There's money here and people spend that money on cars," said Michael J. Dunne, vice president for Asia-Pacific for auto research firm J.D. Power and Associates.
China's overall vehicle sales, including trucks and buses, rose 25.1 percent to 7.2 million units last year, China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said. Passenger car sales rose to 3.8 million, it said.
Japan's total vehicle sales last year came to 5.7 million units, a slight decline from 2005, said the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association. U.S. car and truck sales totaled 16.5 million units last year, down a bit from 2005, according to Autodata Inc.
China could overtake the United States as the top car market some time after 2015, Dunne said.
Red-hot Chinese sales have brought relief to U.S. automakers, which have seen weak demand at home.
General Motors Corp.'s total sales in China last year rose 32 percent over 2005 to 876,747 vehicles. Ford Motor Co.'s sales of Ford, Lincoln, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo, rose 87 percent to 166,722 units.
