Beijing (ZXZC)- Amid an increasingly complex domestic and international environment, China's economy has remained generally stable, with steady growth. Before of the National Day holiday, the government introduced a series of incremental policies to address new challenges in economic operations, aiming to support the ongoing recovery and boost domestic market confidence. During the holiday, consumer enthusiasm surged, and the impact of these policy measures began to show.

In the third quarter of this year, as national subsidies for vehicle scrapping and renewal intensified and local vehicle replacement policies took effect, along with automakers launching new products, China’s passenger car market gradually recovered. This was especially evident in the strong performance of retail auto sales, continuing the "Golden September" healthy market effect. In contrast, the commercial vehicle market remained relatively weak. However, the new energy vehicle (NEV) sector and automobile exports maintained strong momentum, making significant contributions.

Since the implementation of enhanced vehicle trade-in policies, the positive effects have become clear, with a notable increase in applications for scrapping and renewal subsidies, driving up car sales in China.

In September 2024, China's auto production and sales stood at 2.796 million and 2.809 million vehicles, rising a respective 12.2% and 14.5% from the previous month but notching down 1.9% and 1.7% from the previous year, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).

In the first three quarters of this year, China's auto output amounted to 21.47 million vehicles, which was still 1.9% higher from that of the year-ago period. Meanwhile, the country’s auto sales totaled 21.571 million vehicles, up 2.4% year-on-year.

Notably, China’s NEV market boasted exceptional performance in the past month, with both production and sales hit new high. Specifically, a total of 1.307 million NEVs were produced in September, representing a 48.8% year-on-year surge. Monthly NEV sales amounted to 1.287 million units, zooming up 42.3% from a year ago. In the past month, NEVs constituted 45.8% of China’s total auto sales.

BYD Song L; photo credit: BYD

Of the NEVs sold in September, 1.176 million units were consumed domestically, which jumped 18.8% month over month and 45.5% year over year. In the same month, automakers in China moved 111,000 NEVs to overseas markets, up 0.9% month-on-month and 15.6% year-on-year.

In the first nine months of this year, China’s NEV production and sales volumes summed up to 8.316 million units and 8.32 million units, respectively, representing a 31.7% and 32.5% year-on-year spike. NEVs made up 38.6% of the country’s year-to-date auto sales.

Domestic NEV sales reached 7.392 million units in the Jan.-Sept. period, while NEV exports stood at 928,000 units, indicating a 35.6% and 12.5% year-on-year increase each.

Regarding the country’s overall export performance, automakers in China shipped 539,000 vehicles to overseas markets in September, which climbed 5.4% from the previous month and 21.4% from the previous year. 457,000 units of which were passenger cars (+20% YoY), and 82,000 units were commercial vehicles (+29.8% YoY).

In the first three quarters of this year, a total of 4.312 million vehicles were exported from China, jumping 27.3% year over year. Year-to-date exports of passenger cars zoomed up 28% from the earlier year to 3.633 million units, while exports of commercial vehicles grew 23.6% from the year-ago period to 679,000 units.

In September 2024, Chery stayed as the largest auto exporter in China, with monthly export volume standing at 109,000 units (+20.7% YoY), accounting for 20.2% of the country’s combined auto exports in the month.

Compared to the same period last year, JAC Group boasted the most growth, with September exports reach 29,000 vehicles, which more than doubled from before.