China's Passenger Car Sales Plunge 80% in February... Consumption Shrinks Due to COVID-19

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Park Sun-mi] Due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), passenger car sales in China plummeted by 80%. This is the largest monthly decline on record.

On the 5th, the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) announced that passenger car sales in China in February this year dropped by 80% compared to the same period last year. The decline is the largest since statistics began. The cumulative passenger car sales for January and February also decreased by 41% compared to the same period last year, which is also the largest decline on record.

However, the CPCA did not disclose the exact number of passenger car sales in this announcement. It also reported that the average daily sales showed a slight improvement toward the end of February.

The sharp decline in passenger car sales in China is largely due to the spread of COVID-19. The Chinese government extended the Spring Festival (Chinese New Year) holiday at the end of January, halted operations of companies and factories, and restricted intercity population movement, raising concerns about a contraction in overall consumption in the Chinese economy.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.