According to statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, in September 2019, automobiles entered the traditional peak sales season known as "Golden September and Silver October." Compared with August, sales showed a noticeable rebound, and the year-on-year decline in industry sales narrowed somewhat from the previous month. However, the year-on-year decline remained substantial. Since July 2018, China's automobile production and sales have been declining year-on-year for 15 consecutive months, with new-energy vehicle sales falling for three consecutive months. Consumer momentum continues to be insufficient.

In September 2019, the year-on-year decline in auto sales narrowed. Production and sales reached 2.209 million and 2.271 million vehicles, respectively, representing increases of 11% and 16% over August. Compared with the same period in 2018, production fell by 6.2% and sales fell by 5.2%. The decline in production widened by 5.7 percentage points compared to August, while the year-on-year decline in sales narrowed by 1.7 percentage points compared to August.

The passenger vehicle market still faces significant pressure.

In September 2019, passenger vehicle production and sales reached 1.865 million units and 1.931 million units, respectively, representing increases of 10.1% and 16.8% over August, but declines of 7.9% and 6.3% compared to the same period in 2018. The decline in production widened by 7.2 percentage points from August, while the decline in sales narrowed by 1.4 percentage points.

Compared to 2017 and 2018, monthly production from January to September 2019 declined relative to the previous two years. Specifically, the monthly sales growth rate from January to June 2019 was lower than that of the same period in 2017 and 2018, while the monthly sales growth rate from July to September 2019 was lower than that of the same period in 2017 but higher than that of the same period in 2018.

In terms of vehicle segments, sales of the main passenger car types—sedans, MPVs, SUVs, and crossover passenger cars—all increased compared to August. Among these, MPVs saw the fastest growth, rising by 29.4% month-on-month, while crossover passenger cars recorded the slowest growth, up by only 2.2% month-on-month. However, compared to 2018, sales of all four vehicle segments declined. MPVs experienced the largest decline, falling by 22.1% year-on-year, followed by SUVs, which dropped by 9.3% year-on-year, and sedans, which fell by 12% year-on-year.

Volkswagen and Dongfeng Nissan swept the top three spots in passenger car sales.

In the passenger car market, the top three best-selling models in September 2019 were the SAIC Volkswagen New Lavida, the Dongfeng Nissan Sylphy, and the FAW-Volkswagen New Bora, with sales volumes of 48,654 units, 38,069 units, and 37,946 units, respectively. Among these, the New Lavida saw a year-on-year sales increase of 9.2% in September, while the Bora posted a year-on-year sales growth of 102.6%. By contrast, Sylphy sales declined by 10.6% year-on-year. Given that most car buyers place great emphasis on brand reputation and established presence, the Lavida and Sylphy have consistently led the passenger car market in terms of sales volume.

New energy vehicle production and sales declined year-on-year.

In September 2019, the production and sales of new-energy vehicles reached 89,000 units and 80,000 units, respectively, representing year-on-year declines of 29.9% and 34.2%, respectively, compared to the same period in 2018. By vehicle type, plug-in hybrid vehicles saw month-on-month growth in both production and sales, while pure electric vehicle production increased slightly, though sales declined somewhat.

From January to September 2019, the production and sales of new-energy vehicles reached 888,000 units and 872,000 units, respectively, representing year-on-year increases of 20.9% and 20.8%, respectively, although the growth rates slowed down compared to the period from January to August. By vehicle type, battery-electric passenger cars accounted for the largest share of sales, making up 70.7% of total new-energy vehicle sales, while plug-in hybrid passenger cars accounted for 20.2%. In terms of production and sales performance, battery-electric passenger car production and sales increased year-on-year, whereas plug-in hybrid passenger car production and sales declined year-on-year.

Looking at specific models, BAIC New Energy ranked first in sales for September 2019, with sales reaching 8,710 vehicles—a year-on-year increase of 110.5%. Baojun New Energy came in second with sales of 4,315 vehicles, up 313.7% from the previous year. GAC New Energy’s AION S ranked third, with sales of 4,006 vehicles. Among the top ten best-selling models, seven were pure electric vehicles: the BAIC EU series, Baojun New Energy, GAC AION S, BYD Yuan EV, Chery eQ, NIO ES6, and BYD e2. In addition, the BYD Tang DM and BYD Song Pro DM also include pure electric models.