Great Wall Motors Chongqing Smart Factory completed and put into production. Photo by Chen Keru

Chinanews client Beijing March 13 (Zhang Xu) On the 12th, China Automobile Industry Association (hereinafter referred to as the "Automobile Association") released data showing that in February 2020, China's auto production and sales were 285,000 and 31, respectively. Ten thousand vehicles, down 79.8% and 79.1% respectively over the same period last year. Among them, the sales volume of passenger cars in February was 224,000, a decrease of 86.1% month-on-month and 81.7% year-on-year.

The China Automobile Association said that the decline in sales in February was mainly due to the negative impact of the new coronavirus pneumonia epidemic. The production level of enterprises was low, and consumer demand was severely suppressed.

"It is not possible to make an accurate judgment on the situation this year, but considering the current situation, this year's decline must be greater than the previously predicted increase of -2%." Xu Haidong, deputy secretary general of the China Automobile Association, said.

Independent brand market share increased by 9.7%

From the perspective of cumulative market share from January to February, independent, German and Japanese brands all increased, while the market share of American, Korean and French brands continued to decline. According to data released by the China Automobile Association, in February 2020, the market share of Chinese brand passenger cars reached 52.6%, a year-on-year increase of 9.7%; of which, Chinese brand cars increased by 10.9% year-on-year, and SUVs increased by 7% year-on-year.

The data comes from the China Automobile Association.

According to the analysis of the China Automobile Association, the market share of independent brands has increased mainly due to two reasons:

First, important factories of foreign-branded car companies such as Dongfeng Honda, Shenlong Automobile, and SAIC-GM are all located in Wuhan, which is more affected by the epidemic;

Second, the production and operation strategies of Chinese brand car companies are different from those of foreign brands. The former is more determined to resume work and resume production.

The China Automobile Association stressed that because February is a special period, the overall level of sales volume and output is low, and the market share data is not referenced enough to blindly be optimistic. In the future, market competition will remain fierce, and Chinese brands will still face tremendous pressure for survival.

From the perspective of car companies, SAIC Group ranked first with sales of 138,000 units, and Geely followed closely with 5,000 units. It is worth noting that the top ten companies with cumulative sales from January to February totaled 2.04 million units, accounting for 91.2% of the industry's total sales, and the market concentration was higher than the same period.

New energy vehicle encounters Waterloo

In February, the production and sales of new energy vehicles were 9,951 and 12,908, respectively, a year-on-year decline of 82.9% and 75.2%. Among them, 9291 pure electric passenger cars were sold in February, a year-on-year decrease of 73.8%; plug-in hybrid passenger cars were sold, 2190 units, a year-on-year decrease of 82.6%. Since the subsidy of new energy vehicles subsided on June 26, 2019, sales have continued to decline.

The data comes from the China Automobile Association.

Car companies resume work rate of 90%

On the production side, the China Automobile Association has closely tracked 23 auto groups. As of March 11, 23 companies have resumed work at 90.1%, and employees have returned to work at 77%. Among them, Changan Automobile, Chery Automobile, Geely Automobile, Jianghuai Automobile, Brilliance Automobile and other companies have fully resumed work.

The resumption of work of auto companies is facing six major challenges: the obstruction of the supply of production materials; the slow recovery of vehicle sales; the difficulty of enterprises in responding to standard regulations and regulations; the pressure on export of companies;

In this regard, the China Automobile Association recommends that relevant departments speed up the review and approval process of Hubei automobile enterprises for resumption of work; guarantee the supply of epidemic prevention materials; reduce expenses and reduce the burden on enterprises; ensure the safety of small and medium enterprises and reduce the impact of the epidemic;

Appeal for the introduction of increased production promotion policies

Regarding the problems and difficulties faced by the automobile industry, the China Automobile Association has proposed relevant policy recommendations for "stabilizing growth and promoting consumption", including accelerating the resumption of production and production, including enterprises in Hubei; ensuring employment and improving logistics efficiency; adjusting the "double points" assessment To delay the active policy of reducing the burden of “National Six” standards; optimize and continue the new energy subsidy policy, vigorously develop the new energy vehicle industry, and introduce a series of policies to stimulate consumption potential as soon as possible.

Among them, in terms of "promoting consumption", the China Automobile Association suggested that: in the restricted purchase areas, the number of automobile license plates should be appropriately increased to lift the restriction on the purchase of new energy vehicles; personal car purchase expenses should be included in the special additional deduction for personal income tax; ) Passenger vehicle purchase tax rates; introduction of “automobile to the countryside” to promote consumption policies; implementation of “National Three” emission vehicle purchase tax reductions; increased auto financial support; increased vehicle export value-added tax rebate rates to promote vehicle exports; and Used car circulation and consumption.

"The automobile industry must have corresponding policy support in the consumer and market. If the policy is not introduced in a timely manner, the downward trend of the automobile market will continue." Shi Jianhua, deputy secretary-general of the China Automobile Association, said that on the contrary, if the timely introduction of new energy A series of policies such as subsidies for automobiles to boost the market will play a positive role in the continued stable and healthy development of the entire automotive industry.

The China Automobile Association believes that the automotive industry has bottomed out in February this year and is expected to pick up in March. With the current epidemic under control, it is expected that the Chinese automobile industry will fully recover in the third quarter of this year. (Finish)