As price wars fade and consumer wait-and-see sentiment eases, pent-up demand has been released, the CPCA said.
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Sales of new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China doubled in the first two weeks of May compared with the same period last year and also showed significant growth over the same period in April, although the Labor Day holiday at the beginning of the month may have brought some shock.
From May 1 to 14, China's retail sales of new energy passenger vehicles were 217,000 units, up 101 percent year-on-year and up 17 percent from the same period last month, according to data released today by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).
So far this year, China's retail sales of new energy passenger cars were 2.06 million units, up 41 percent year-on-year.
From May 1 to 14, wholesale sales of new energy passenger vehicles in China were 193,000 units, up 69 percent year-on-year and up 13 percent from April, according to the CPCA.
So far this year, wholesale sales of new energy passenger vehicles are up 32 percent year-on-year to 2.11 million units.
In the first two weeks of May, retail sales of all passenger vehicles in China were up 55 percent to 706,000 units, up 24 percent from the same period last month, the CPCA said.
So far this year, retail sales of passenger cars in China were up 3 percent to 6.6 million units.
This means that the penetration of NEVs at retail in China was 30.73 percent in the first two weeks of May and 31.20 percent so far this year.
In the first week of May -- May 1-7 -- the average daily retail sales of passenger cars in China were 54,000 units, up 67 percent from the same period last year and up 46 percent from the same period in April.
In the second week of May -- May 8-14 -- average daily retail sales of passenger cars were 47,000 units, up 44 percent year-on-year and up 5 percent from the same period in April.
As price wars faded, dealers' mindsets stabilized and consumers returned to rational spending, the CPCA said, adding that this eased wait-and-see sentiment and released pent-up demand.
During the Labor Day holiday, some local governments and manufacturers provided temporary subsidies, which helped the auto market grow in early May, and new orders from the holiday are expected to be released gradually, the CPCA said. This year, China's Labor Day holiday was from April 29 to May 3.
CPCA weekly data: NEV retail sales for 1st 2 weeks of May at 217,000
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