China’s car sales fell by nearly a fifth in May as consumers in the world’s largest vehicle market remain reluctant to make new purchases due to new emissions rules and concerns over the slowing economy, reported the Financial Times.
Passenger vehicles sales fell 17.4% in May compared to the same month last year, following a 17.7% decline in April, according to wholesale data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.
In the overall market, vehicle sales fell 16.4% in May, their fastest year-on-year decline on record, mainly due to a sharp drop in sales of commercial vehicles such as buses and trucks, which fell 11.8%, the association said.
China’s passenger vehicle market shrunk for the first time since the 1990s last year, due to a reduction in subsidies for buyers and an economic slowdown which knocked consumer confidence, hitting revenue for the world’s largest carmakers such as GM and Volkswagen. GM’s China sales decreased 17.5% in the first quarter of 2019.
