On the afternoon of January 9th, the China Passenger Car Association released the report "Analysis of the National Passenger Car Market in December 2024", which showed that the retail sales of the national passenger car market in December were 2.635 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 12.0% and a month on month increase of 8.7%. In 2024, the cumulative retail sales were 22.894 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 5.5%.

The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) stated that in 2024, the wholesale, production, and export of passenger cars reached a new historical high, and the annual retail sales still have a gap of nearly one million vehicles compared to the peak in 2017. There is still huge potential to promote consumption in 2025.

Among them, the overall automobile exports continued the strong growth characteristics of last year, with passenger car exports reaching 4.8 million units, a year-on-year increase of 25%. However, the export growth rate in the fourth quarter was 8%, indicating a significant slowdown in growth.

Last year, the domestic retail sales of new energy vehicles reached 10.899 million units, a year-on-year increase of 3.154 million units, with a growth rate of 41%, which is 5 percentage points higher than the growth rate in 2023, changing the previous pattern of gradual decline in growth rate.

The annual retail penetration rate of new energy vehicles reached 47.6%, an increase of 12 percentage points year-on-year. In the second half of the year, the penetration rate exceeded 50% for five consecutive months. In December, the domestic retail penetration rate of new energy vehicles fell to 49.4%, an increase of 9.1 percentage points compared to the same period last year.

The share of domestic brand cars will further increase in 2024, with annual wholesale share exceeding 65% and retail share exceeding 60%, an increase of 9 percentage points compared to last year. The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers believes that the comprehensive leadership of domestic brands reflects the innovative model of domestic brands in product strength and channel management in 2024, which will continue to receive user support and recognition.

From the narrow perspective of retail sales of passenger cars, BYD ranks first with 3.718 million units, while Geely Automobile and FAW Volkswagen rank second and third respectively. The top ten manufacturers include Changan Automobile, Chery Automobile, SAIC Volkswagen, SAIC GM Wuling, FAW Toyota, GAC Toyota, and Tesla China.

Looking ahead to the national passenger car market in January this year, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) stated that there were a total of 19 working days in January, which was 3 days less than January and December of last year. The automotive industry usually takes early leave before the Spring Festival, so the effective production and sales time in January is short. January is a time of significant fluctuations in the car market, with external economic conditions and seasonal demand having a significant impact, especially the influence of the Spring Festival.

Previously, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance issued a notice confirming that the policy of exchanging old cars for new ones will continue until 2025. The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) has determined that based on the calculation of the basic continuation of the policy in 2024, the retail sales of domestic cars in 2025 will be 23.4 million, an increase of 2%, and the retail sales of new energy passenger vehicles will be 13.3 million, an increase of 20%, with a penetration rate of 57%.