Vehicle output in China shows mild increase
China's vehicle output totaled 406'300 units in January 2005, up only 0.62% from December 2004, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said. Meanwhile, sales of domestically-made vehicles tumbled 25% month-on-month to 243'100 units in January. Vehicle output and sales in January 2005 jumped 35.4% and 20.7% respectively, when compared with figures a year earlier. Vehicle sales is expected to show a rise starting from February, the association pointed out. However, analysts stated that auto sales are only expected to rebound during the second half of this year. Analysts indicate that the domestic auto market's situation is not likely to show a strong improvement during the first half of this year due to customers' persistent delays in purchasing cars, despite car makers' frequent price cuts. China's automotive market is projected to grow only 10-12% to 5.6 million units this year.The expected growth is down from 15.5% last year. Passenger vehicle output in China rose 23.7% year-on-year to 257'700 units in January 2005. Sales of domestically-made passenger vehicles rose 8.1% year-on-year to 243'100 units. The country's commercial vehicle output amounted to 148'600 units last month, an increase of 61.8% from a year earlier. The output included 13'900 buses and 89'500 trucks. Sales of domestically-made commercial vehicles rose 56.9% year-on-year to 123'000 units in January.