China's passenger car sales last month drove to their strongest growth this year, helped by tax cuts and extreme weather conditions, the China Passenger Car Association said yesterday.
Deliveries of sedans, sport-utility vehicles, multi-purpose vehicles and minivans jumped 17.6 percent in November from a year earlier to 2.02 million units. The combined passenger car sales reached 18.2 million units as of November, up 7.5 percent from a year earlier.
Since October, China has cut vehicle purchase taxes for passenger cars with engines below 1.6 liters by half in a bid to power the auto market to recovery. Deducting 5 percent off each eligible car's retail price excluding value-added taxes, the tax cuts are expected to spur hundreds of billion of yuan in sales, according to Cui Dongshu, the secretary-general of the association.
Another factor powering the auto sales in November was the cold weather and the smog which caused people to buy cars to move around in, the association said.
"The smoggy weather makes people particularly sensitive to the safety of their commute," it said.
On Monday, Beijing raised its first ever red alert, the highest level of warning, on its air pollution. Other emergency measures include restricting almost half of its cars on the roads based on the odd or even numbers of their license plates.
The Chinese government is walking a tight rope of stabilizing the auto industry and controlling vehicle exhaust which is the main source of air pollutants.
China's 13th Five-Year plan, which starts in 2016, paves the way for carmakers to go green. New energy car sales will continue to be commercial market-focused following the downscaling of subsidies for green car private buyers, according to the association.
