International car brands saw a 6.9% decline in sales last year in China, the world’s largest automobile market, with their market share falling to 45.6% from 51.1% the year before, according to China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). In contrast, Chinese branded passenger car sales saw a year-on-year growth of 4.4% in 2021, achieving a sales volume of 20.15 million. The market share of German, Japanese and South Korean brands dropped significantly, with sales volumes down 8.9%, 1.8% and 25.9%. While, sales of car brands from the United States and France rose 6.6% and 63.6% respectively, “German and Japanese brands are mainly affected by the chip shortage, which should improve this year. Ford’s growth is due to its Lincoln marque, while Dongfeng Peugeot Citroen’s increase is thanks to its new models,” said Cui Dongshu, Secretary General of the CPCA.
Volkswagen was badly hit by the chip shortage in 2021, delivering 3.3 million vehicles in China, down 14.1% year-on-year. “The year 2021 was a very difficult year for us,” said Stephan Woellenstein, CEO of Volkswagen Group China. He said the semiconductor crisis has swept across the auto industry and hit Volkswagen even harder because many of its brands and models share platforms. Although Volkswagen was still the best-selling brand in the Chinese market, but the gap with Toyota has narrowed.
In 2021, Toyota sold 1.94 million new cars in China, up 8.2% from the previous year, increasing for nine consecutive years and setting a record high. Toyota’s overall sales were driven by growth in the automaker’s hybrid sales in China. In 2021, Toyota sold 475,900 hybrid vehicles in China, accounting for nearly 25% of its overall sales. The other two leading Japanese brands – Honda and Nissan – experienced a decline in China sales. In 2021, Honda’s sales volume in China was 1.56 million units, down 4% year-on-year. Among them, GAC Honda sold 780,300 vehicles, and Dongfeng Honda 793,300 units. The cumulative sales volume of Dongfeng Nissan was 1.13 million units in 2021, down 6.4% from the previous year. In 2022, Japanese car companies will focus on electric vehicles. Toyota will launch a model based on its new electric vehicle manufacturing platform bZ, as well as a new car in cooperation with China’s leading new energy vehicle maker BYD. Honda will launch two EVs in the Chinese market – the e:NP1 and e:NS1. Nissan plans to introduce its EV model Ariya to China. Last year, SAIC-GM’s Buick, Chevrolet and Cadillac sold 1.33 million vehicles in total, down 9% from 2020. In 2022, the Sino-U.S. joint venture is expected to rely on NEVs as a growth driver, the China Daily reports.
