Chinese cars take over the automobile industry

Tuesday, 10 January 2017 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Chinese car market is now the largest in the world. In fact it’s massive and impressive, something like the world has never seen before, and will likely never ever see again. But what does “massive” really mean? It means the biggest, the most brands and models, the most expensive and also the cheapest. Here’s why we feel that they’ve taken over the global automobile market.

1. The Chinese car market is the biggest in the world!

The Chinese car market is the biggest passenger car market in the world. It became the largest in 2009, and has remained the largest ever since. In 2015, automakers sold 21.1 million passenger cars, up 7.3% from 2014. Its growth alone (1.1 million) is almost as big as the entire Australian car market (1.15 million). This year’s growth of passenger car sales is forecast to reach 8%, which would size the market at 22.8 million sales, making China the largest market again, by a wide margin.

2. It has the most brands and models

The numbers of brands in the Chinese car market is recorded as 130 (as of May 2016), the most by any country. With three kinds of brands such as, foreign brands like Audi and Mercedes to local Chinese brands like Geely and also sub brands under foreign-Chinese joint ventures such as Venucia, the industry is truly multi-faceted. All in all there are 952 models of cars that is available for sale in China making it the most diverse car market in the world.

3. Has the most expensive cars in the world

Wealthy Chinese car buyers are unlucky. They pay far more for their exclusive ride than their fellow high-rollers elsewhere in the world. In the United States, a Mercedes-Maybach S600 costs $190,275. In China the very same car goes for $440,000, more than double the U.S. price. One more example: the Ferrari 512berlinetta costs $323,745 in the U.S., and $810,000 in China, just over 2.5 times more. The enormous difference is caused mainly by two reasons: high taxes and healthy entrepreneurship. Of course this is applicable only for domestic buyers in China.

4. China also sells the cheapest cars in the world

Less wealthy Chinese car buyers are also very lucky. They pay much less for an affordable car than buyers in other countries, because the market also has the cheapest cars in the world, in almost every category. This end of the market is the exclusive domain of the local Chinese automakers. Prices can be so low because automakers incur low labour costs, low development costs, and are often benefitted from generous subsidies of the local governments in the locations where the automakers are based, and you end up with a very low-cost and a very low-priced car. The margins are also thin as manufacturers focus on higher volumes.

All in all, the Chinese automobile market has established themselves firmly by getting the basics right and putting the needs of its customers forward. Providing feature-packed vehicles for an affordable price, the quality of Chinese vehicles are now in par with the highest global standards. The number of Chinese manufactured vehicles on Sri Lankan roads have also increased significantly, thanks to a few key Chinese brands that have caught on in the past few years. In conclusion, here’s the grand old question “Why pay more, when you could get the same product for a lot less?” Chinese cars are here, and they’re here to stay.