Jul 19 (South China Morning Post) - Japan’s top carmakers suffered a huge setback in China in the first half, with sales plunging nearly 20 per cent, their biggest drop in the world’s largest car market since 2012, where the shift to electric vehicles (EVs) is accelerating.
The top six – Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Subaru – all of which assemble and sell cars through their joint ventures with Chinese partners, sold 1.71 million conventional vehicles between January and June, a 19.9 per cent decline year on year, according to industry data provider MarkLines.
“The dynamic Chinese car market requires all players to react quickly to customers’ changing tastes,” said Eric Han, a senior manager at Suolei, an advisory firm in Shanghai. “Japanese carmakers are lagging behind their Chinese rivals in developing electric cars which are now in high demand here.” ...continue reading
