Vehicle sales in China – additional information
The automobile industry has been, without a doubt, a major driving force in China’s economic momentum. European car manufacturers had been some of the early investors when China opened up slowly to the West. By 2013, China had become the world’s leading car producing country with a production volume of approximately 18 million passenger cars and a share of over 22 percent of total global vehicle production.
With its population size and the continuously rising spending capacity among consumer groups, the Chinese market has surpassed its role as a mere production location and positioned itself among the most sought after consumer markets worldwide. Passenger car sales have been skyrocketing since 2008, reaching almost 18 million passenger cars sold in 2013. According to the Ministry of Transport, about 200 million licensed drivers were registered in China as of 2012, displaying a growth rate of approximately 15 percent compared to the previous year. Additionally, the number of privately owned vehicles ranged at just above 88 million cars. Both of those figures demonstrate the huge potential for car sales in China still to be unlocked.