Beijing (ZXZC)- Nissan Motor’s annual sales performance in China slipped slightly compared to a year ago, but the latest ALTIMA model continued to drive the group’s sales year-round.

Sylphy; photo credit: Nissan

In December, Nissan Motor sold 133,803 vehicles, dropping 20.8% from the earlier year. During the entire year of 2021, the auto group sold 1,381,494 vehicles in total, representing a 5.2% year on year decline.

In the last month of 2021, Nissan Motor’s passenger vehicle joint venture, Dongfeng Motor Co. & Ltd. (DFL), sold 114,093 vehicles (including Nissan and Venucia brands), up 18% compared to a year ago. Nissan sold 97,317 vehicles, while Venucia sold 16,776 vehicles.

DFL saw a 6.4% decrease in its annual cumulative sales volume in 2021, at 1,134,889 vehicles sold, with 1,047,073 vehicles from Nissan and 87,816 vehicles from Venucia.

Notably, the seventh-generation Nissan ALTIMAs continued to boost sales for the auto brand, with 20,008 vehicles sold in December, surging 24.8% year on year. The cumulative sales volume of the model amounted to 163,741 vehicles this year, indicating a 38.7% jump versus the previous year.

The monthly sales volume of the Sylphy series amounted to 50,492 units in December, rising 18.6% month on month. In 2021, the series sold 513,193 vehicles in total.

The light commercial vehicle sector of the group (including Dongfeng Automobile Co. & Ltd. and Zhengzhou Nissan), saw a 15.9% year-on-year decline in its December sales, to 18,625 vehicles. The annual sales volume of the sector summed up to 234,309 vehicles in its annual sales volume, growing 7.8% from the previous year.