More individuals buying cars
11/6/2003 15:29
Individuals have become the main buyers of cars in China, giving a
boost to the domestic auto industry, the Shanghai Morning Post
today.
Individual car buying is expected to peak in Beijing, Shanghai,
Guangzhou and Shenzhen, where the ratio between car prices and GDP per capita
has nearly reached two, which is considered a significant threshold, according
to an international car market research.
The growing number of private
car buyers has boosted the Chinese auto industry, with sales revenues in the
industry ranking in the top five among domestic industries in the first quarter
of the year, according to statistics.
The auto industry has contributed
13.2 percent of the total industrial profit growth from January to March this
year, ranking second in the domestic industry.
The car manufacturing
industry became the fifth largest major industry in the nation in the first
quarter of the year for the first time.
The auto industry is expected to
become China's most promising sector in the coming 20 years, an expert
predicted.
Individuals began to buy cars in 1990, with the proportions of
cars bought by individuals soaring since 2002, said an expert with the National
Bureau of Statistics.
According to statistics, to date, 10 million cars
are owned by individuals, with every 120-odd people possessing a private
car.
China's car output is predicted to exceed France this year, and
China will become the fourth largest car producing country after the United
States, Japan and Germany.
Wendy Zhang/ Shanghai Daily news
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