General Motors and its joint venture partners sold 327,037 vehicles in China in October 2015, a 15 percent increase from October 2014. The upbeat results follow several months of falling GM sales in the Chinese market, with the growth likely being the result of a new incentive program initiated by the Chinese government that cuts the tax rate on certain new vehicles.
“GM is well positioned to capture the growth opportunities in the SUV, MPV and luxury segments, and our new products are gaining market share,” said GM Executive Vice President and GM China President Matt Tsien. “The recently announced government incentive for vehicle purchases helped boost buying sentiment starting in October.”
A continued growth in the demand for SUVs, MPVs and luxury vehicles continued to support GM’s sales for the month. The Buick Envision and Baojun 560 led the sales growth of GM’s SUVs in October, with sales growing 255 percent on an annual basis.
Chevrolet
Chevrolet sales dropped 8.4 percent year-on-year to 51,173 units in October. GM states that the drop is “mainly due to a model changeover”.
Buick
Buick sales increased 42 percent in October, with monthly sales exceeding 100,000 units for the first time ever. The result marks the brand’s best-ever monthly sales result.
The increase was led by the Excelle GT and Envision SUV. Sales of the Excelle GT more than doubled last month from a year earlier.
Cadillac
Cadillac sold a record 5,757 vehicles in China, an increase of 23 percent year-over-year.
Sales of the ATS-L — which received several updates for the 2016 model year — reached a new high for the month. See more on the 2016 Cadillac ATS-L.
Baojun
Baojun sales jumped 113 percent to 51,589 units from the previous October, setting an all-time high for the month.
The Baojun 560 became the second-best-selling SUV in China within three months of its launch on July 18, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).
Wuling
Wuling sales dropped 6.8 percent to 116,786 units in October from a year earlier. The General blames the “continued contraction of the mini-commercial vehicle market” for the decline.
Editor’s Note
Starting with April 2015 sales results, GM began reporting retail sales rather than wholesales in China. All numbers stated above are retail sales.
Comments
One good month after a decline for 3 months in a row isn’t great news for GM . But with the upcoming CT6 and XT5 from Cadillac and the new LaCrosse from Buick sales might look better going forward . The trend may get worse though if China’s economy doesn’t start to improve . It may be a tough year for automakers in that part of the world. .