SHANGHAI, China — On the wings of double- and even triple-digit percentage increases in auto sales in 2009, China has surpassed the United States to become the world's largest auto market for the first time.
The sales bonanza has affected most of the automakers operating in China. Toyota reported China sales for 2009 were up 121 percent, to 709,000 vehicles, led by its China-built RAV4 and Highlander sport-utility vehicles and Corolla sedans.
South Korea's Hyundai Motor and its affiliate, Kia, were next with an 85.9 percent increase to a total of 811,695 vehicles sold in China last year.
General Motors, the biggest international automaker in China, sold a record 1.83 million units in 2009 — a 67 percent jump — and expanded total market share to 13.4 percent.
According to the Center for Automotive Research, vehicle sales in the U.S. slid 21 percent to 10.4 million units last year, while sales in China for the first 11 months of last year already exceeded 12 million units with an annual increase of 42 percent. Zhu Yiping of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said it is "almost for sure" that, when the Chinese government releases statistics next week, China will be confirmed as the world's largest auto market for the first time.
Industry analysts expect China's auto sales in 2010 to grow at a moderate pace of 10 percent, to some 15 million units, after the government disclosed that it would retain incentives, including tax breaks and subsidies, that helped boost demand last year.
With the recovering global economy, Ford and Nissan have announced plans to increase production in China. Other carmakers have raised sales targets for this year and are hopeful of bullish sales again.
Battery and electric-carmaker BYD Automobile, which doubled sales to 400,000 units last year, plans to introduce five new models and double sales to 800,000 units this year.
Privately owned Geely aims to increase sales by 20 percent to 400,000 units, and Guangzhou Toyota wants to drive sales up by 27 percent to 267,000 units this year.
Inside Line says: A new era seems to have begun in the global auto industry. — ivian Jin, Correspondent
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