Toyota's Chinese sales in February fell by 45.7% year-on-year

Toyota (China) released data on March 1 stating that in February this year, sales in China fell by 45.7% year-on-year. Compared with last year, the Lunar New Year this year moved from January to February, thus increasing the YoY increase in January and the YoY decline in February.

Nearly half of year-on-year reductions

In February 2013, Toyota sold approximately 36,300 vehicles in the Chinese market, compared with 66,800 in February 2012, which was a 45.7% year-on-year decline. After the suspension of the decline in January, Toyota’s sales in China fell sharply again. The year-on-year decline in the last year was only second to the 48.9% in September last year.

In contrast, in January of this year, Toyota and its partners in China sold a total of approximately 72,500 vehicles in the Chinese market. In January 2012, the sales volume in China was 58,700 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 23.5%. This means that in the first two months of this year Toyota’s cumulative sales in China reached 108,800 units, compared to 125,500 units in the same period of last year, which was a decrease of 13.3% year-on-year.

The situation in 2012 was rather special. The Gregorian calendar time for the Spring Festival was January, and in 2013, it returned to the usual February. Normally, the auto dealership stores ceased operation during the Spring Festival holiday, which was unfavorable to sales. Therefore, the sales base was lower in January last year and the relative base was higher in February. Both Toyota and analysts pointed out in January that seasonal factors played an important role in the current month’s rebound. Experts asserted that Japanese brands have turned over in China and are still fashionable. early.

In January last year, Toyota sold 58,700 vehicles in China, a decrease of 26.2% year-on-year. In February, Toyota sold 66,800 vehicles in China, an increase of 51.3% year-on-year; 125,500 units sold in the first two months, an increase of 1.5% year-on-year. In March, Toyota sold 86,000 vehicles in China, an increase of 2.2% year-on-year. In the first quarter, it sold 211,500 vehicles, an increase of 1.8% year-on-year. From the fluctuation of sales growth in the above months, we can see the influence of seasonal factors on sales volume in the past year.

Since September 2012, the Sino-Japanese Diaoyu Islands crisis has caused Japanese cars to be boycotted in China. Toyota, Nissan, and other Japanese car manufacturers have all sold plummeting in China. Until January of this year, Toyota terminated the year-on-year decline in the past six months.

In September 2012, Toyota's sales volume in China was 44,100 units, compared with 86,300 units in the same period of 2011, down 48.9% year-on-year; cumulative sales for the first three quarters totaled 640,200 units, compared with 611,960 units in the same period of 2011, an increase of 4.6% year-on-year. Toyota’s sales volume in China in October was 45,600 units, down 44% year-on-year; cumulative sales in the first 10 months were 685,900 units, down 1% year-on-year.

In November, Toyota's sales volume in China was 63,800 units, which was 81,800 units in the same period of 2011, down 22.1% year-on-year. Accumulated sales in the first 11 months totaled 749,600 units, down 3.3% year-on-year. In December, Toyota sold 90,800 vehicles in China. In the same period of 2011, Toyota sold 108,000 vehicles, down 15.9% year-on-year. In 2012, it sold 840,500 vehicles, which was 4.9% lower than the 883,000 vehicles sold in 2011.

Japanese car crashed in February or year-on-year

Not coincidentally, Nissan’s sales in China in February are also expected to show a plummeting trend. At the announcement of the new Tianzi car on February 26, Kimiyasu Nakamura, president of Dongfeng Motor Co., Ltd., said that although Nissan’s current sales figures in China are not yet available in February, Nissan is expected to be in China in January and February this year. Total sales may fall by about 20% from the same period in 2012.

Nissan sold 115,732 vehicles in China in January, compared with 94,745 in January 2012, a significant year-on-year increase of 22.2%. Since the Sino-Japanese Diaoyu Islands crisis caused the sales of Japanese cars in China in September last year, Nissan has ceased its downward trend for four consecutive months in January this year.

In January 2012, Nissan’s sales volume in China was 94,745 units. In January 2011, it was 113,042 units, a year-on-year decrease of 16.2%. In February, Nissan’s sales volume in China was 107,855 units. In February 2011, it was 68,823 units, an increase of 56.7% year-on-year. In the first two months, sales totaled 202,600 units, compared with 181,865 units in the same period of 2011, an increase of 11.4% year-on-year.

If sales in the first two months of 2013 fell 20% from the same period in 2012, it would be around 162,080 vehicles. According to the sales of 115,732 units in January, it was only 46,348 units in February, a year-on-year drop of 57.0%. According to the usual practice, Nissan will publish data on its sales in China in February in the next few days, and will publish accurate figures by the end of this month.