China auto sector sees Q3 net profits down 62%
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Shanghai, October 31 (Gasgoo.com) Up to October 30, at least 17 of China's 22 automakers had released their profit report for the third quarter this year. From July to September, the 17 Chinese carmakers’ auto sales revenues totaled 47.385 billion yuan ($6.93 billion), down by 2.9 percentage points from one year earlier, and their net profits stood at 747 million yuan, down 62.45% year on year, said xinhuanet.com new today.
According to the data from Chinese Association of Automobile Manufacturers, the growth rate of China's domestic output and sales in the first nine months this year had declined by 10.1% to the lowest since 1999. The export market of this year to date was also sluggish, with an abrupt reversal from the consecutive 100% growth since 2003.
As their current sales figures failed to reach their average quarterly objective, many automakers in China have begun to scale down their sales targets for the year. In the first nine months, China's car giant Shanghai GM had finished only 54% of its 2008 sales goal, so the joint venture had to reduce this year's sales target of its Chevrolet brand by 25%.
Another big Chinese automaker FAW Car has reduce its Magotan sales in 2008 to 70,000 units from 90,000 units set in January; Dongfeng Yueda Kia has cut down its 2008 sales target from 200,000 units to 160,000 units.
An industry analyst said that the higher rising fuel prices, shrinking earnings, sliding overseas demand and other factors have combined to put China's auto industry on the slippery slope. Still, the market demand in the fourth quarter is likely to rebound somewhat, and the whole-year auto sales in China will see a growth of 10% or so, but much lower than previously expected.
