Xinhua News Service reports that China’s automobile industry has shown a growing trend with sales and exports of vehicles steadily increasing in the first half of this year (H1), according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) on Wednesday, 10 July.

In the first six months, China’s auto production reached about 13.89 million units, up 4.9 percent year-on-year, the data shows. In the meantime, auto sales stood at 14.05 million units, increasing 6.1 percent from the same period last year.

China’s auto exports stood at around 2.79 million units in H1, surging by 30.5 percent year-on-year. The surge in exports contributed significantly to the overall growth of China’s auto market during the period, the CAAM said.

In June alone, China’s auto production and sales reached 2.51 million units and 2.55 million units, respectively, representing an increase of 5.7 percent and 5.6 percent from the previous month.

The month-on-month increase was partly thanks to a combination of factors such as the ongoing auto trade-in program and the releasing of new car models, the CAAM said.

Chinese brands have made a breakthrough as they are striving for growth in the domestic auto market. The market share of Chinese passenger car brands exceeded 60 percent by the end of June this year, according to the association.

The Big Picture Context

Global vehicle sales in 2023 totaled 92.4 million units, including 88.8 million light vehicles, 10.8% above 2022’s 80.2 3. In the same year, vehicle sales in China were 30.13 million units, or 32.6% of the global total.

The global automotive interior leather market was estimated at US$33.35 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.43% from 2023 to 2030, driven by increasing demand for leather in upholstery applications in the projected growth in the premium and luxury market segments.

According to the Automotive Interior Leather Market Trends, the Asia Pacific region (APAC, which includes China, accounted for 41% of the revenue generated by the leather interior market in 2022 – US$13.70 billion.

The automotive interior sector combined with the furniture sector are major export markets in APAC for western leather exporters to increase their sales.

The leather trade fairs in Hong Kong and Shanghai are the business platforms par excellence to contact representatives of this huge market.

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