Car sales in January increased by 31.9% year-on-year, can the hot sales momentum continue?
In 2021, the auto market has a good start.
On February 4, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers estimated based on the statistics of key enterprises in the ten-day report that in January 2021, the sales volume of the automobile industry is expected to complete 2.54 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 31.9%.
Judging from the situation of auto companies that have released data for January, sales have also increased significantly year-on-year.
Why did the auto market perform so much in January?
Can the hot sales momentum continue throughout the year?
What aspects of the auto market need to make efforts?
On these issues, the reporter interviewed relevant people and experts in the auto market.
Multi-factor promotion volume increased
Among the 20 auto brands that have announced their sales in January, 19 brands have seen significant year-on-year sales growth, and preliminary statistics have averaged an increase of about 130%.
The economy is recovering rapidly and consumer confidence continues to rise. At the same time, the Spring Festival is approaching and consumers are rushing to buy cars, which is considered to have played a certain role in promoting the "good start" of the auto market in January.
Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the Passenger Car Market Information Joint Council, said, “Affected by the epidemic, the sales period last January was only more than 20 days, and the sales base was low. This is the main reason for the higher year-on-year increase in car sales in January this year.”
The biggest contributors to the average growth rate are new energy vehicle companies, especially the “new forces” in vehicle manufacturing. This is mainly due to the continuous improvement of product supply capacity and technological level, and the substantial increase in the number of new energy vehicles for private consumption, which drives overall sales growth.
Among them, the sales of Weilai Automobile rose sharply, Xiaopeng Automobile doubled its sales year-on-year for 7 consecutive months, and the sales volume of Ideal ONE in January increased by 355.8% year-on-year.
The new energy vehicle segment of traditional car companies has seen significant growth. GAC Ion sold 7,356 vehicles in January, a year-on-year increase of 145%.
"The impact of policies and subsidies on the new energy vehicle market has gradually weakened. New products that meet market demand have played an important role in promoting the substantial growth of new energy vehicles. The sales of many new energy vehicle companies have increased significantly, marking the entry of new energy vehicles into a new Development stage." Cui Dongshu thinks.
The "second echelon" that contributed to the growth of the auto market in January is the traditional auto companies.
Independent brands represented by Changan and Hongqi seized the market demand of consumption upgrades, optimized product structure, and achieved good results.
Changan Automobile sold 251980 units in January, an increase of 87.24% year-on-year.
Another strength comes from the luxury car market.
Data show that FAW Audi's sales in January increased by 35.8%, and Lincoln increased by 162%. The luxury car market continued its growth momentum last year.
In 2020, the overall domestic auto market will increase by -1.9%, but the luxury car market will increase by over 14%.
Chen Shihua, deputy secretary-general of the China Automobile Association, said that the trend of upward brand upgrades in the passenger car market will not change in the future, and mid-to-high-end products will become the dominant market demand in the future.
The annual production and sales growth rate is expected to reach 4%
The relevant person in charge of the China Automobile Dealers Association said that by the end of 2020, auto companies did not significantly reduce the dealers' inventory, and the pressure on dealers' inventory has not further increased.
In particular, the imported luxury brand index, the independent brand index, and the mainstream joint-venture brand index all declined month-on-month. On the one hand, it shows that these brands are selling well. On the other hand, it also shows that many dealers are conservative about the auto market in January this year and did not purchase a large amount of goods.
Like many dealers, many insiders in the auto industry are cautiously optimistic about the auto market this year.
Ye Shengji, chief engineer and deputy secretary-general of the China Automobile Association, told reporters that in 2021, the trend of the auto market is closely related to economic stability and the sinking of the domestic demand market.
On the one hand, my country’s economy and employment remain stable, especially for low- and middle-income earners whose work and income are stable, which will affect the development of the automobile market.
On the other hand, if there are further breakthroughs in the development of the automobile market in small and medium-sized cities and the vast township markets, the automobile market this year should be very optimistic.
However, there are many uncertainties in the epidemic and the world economic situation, so the auto market needs to be cautiously optimistic.
Ye Shengji said that the improvement of new energy vehicle product capabilities, the improvement of supporting facilities and the improvement of consumer concepts will play a positive role in promoting the future market development and development of new energy vehicles.
Xu Haidong, deputy chief engineer of the China Automobile Association, is relatively optimistic.
He believes that 2020 has been the bottom of the development of China's auto industry in recent years, and it will enter a continuous and upward stable development cycle in the future.
In particular, 2021 is the first year of the "14th Five-Year Plan", and the overall national policy will remain stable and continuous, and there will be no "sharp turn".
The automobile industry is an important industry in China's economy that is dominated by internal circulation, and the automobile industry will also maintain steady growth.
"It is expected that in 2021, automobile production and sales will increase by about 4%, of which passenger vehicles will increase by about 7.5%, commercial vehicles will decline by about 10%, and new energy vehicles will reach 1.8 million units, maintaining a growth rate of more than 40%. "Xu Haidong judges that my country's annual production and sales of automobiles will reach 30 million in 2025.
Historic opportunity not to be missed
To truly see the direction of the automotive industry, we need to have a deep understanding and understanding of the future of automobiles.
As Chen Qingtai, chairman of the China Electric Vehicles Association, said, this automobile revolution is not going on in isolation. Parallel and connected with it is the new energy revolution and the new generation of mobile communications, the transportation revolution and the smart city, and it is mobility that supports the automobile revolution. The rapid development of Internet, digital economy and artificial intelligence technology.
"From the perspective of the history of the development of the automobile industry, every major breakthrough in automobile technology is the result of close cooperation between vehicle and parts companies." Chen Qingtai said that the bottom of the automobile power should be the parts power. The subversive nature of the system has caused more than 70% of the traditional parts system to face reconstruction.
At present, the barriers to new component technology have not yet formed, and there is a lot of room for innovation. This has brought historic opportunities for the development of Chinese component companies, especially high-tech small and medium-sized enterprises.
my country's automobile industry has reached a consensus in the industry to strengthen the chain and strengthen the chain.
Ye Shengji said that the shortcomings of my country's auto industry, including some key core technologies, need to be further improved. The new development pattern has brought rare opportunities to the rapid development of the auto industry and also brought many opportunities for the development of the entire industry chain. The industry can use this to realize the safety and control of the entire industry chain.
Fortunately, the informatization, networking, artificial intelligence and other fields involved in the new supply chain are developing steadily in my country.
Chen Qingtai said that it is necessary to seize the opportunity to make great efforts in the "stuck neck" links such as system software, automotive chips, and power semiconductors, and strive to cultivate a group of powerful new parts companies and cultivate more "small giants". Be independent and controllable under open conditions, and lay a solid foundation for my country's new parts and components.
(Economic Daily-China Economic Net reporter Liu Jin)