A global auto industry that has expanded every year since 2009 faces a stalling market in China, collapsing demand in Russia and weakness in some Southeast Asian and South American countries. In the US, industry-wide deliveries increased just 4.4 per cent during the first half of the year, putting the market on track for its smallest annual gain since the recovery began.
General Motors, the third-biggest automaker by global sales, said earlier this month that its worldwide deliveries fell 1.2 per cent in the first half to 4.86 million vehicles.
"The extent of the recent softness exhibited by many markets was not anticipated at the beginning of the year by either the companies themselves or by the market," Clive Wiggins, a Tokyo-based analyst at BNP Paribas SA, wrote in a report on Monday. Japanese carmakers may cut sales forecasts and need cost reductions and currency gains to avoid having to reduce their outlook for earnings, he said.
China's passenger-vehicle sales fell for the first time in more than two years in June as economic growth slowed and a stock-market rout dented consumer sentiment. Global automakers will manufacture fewer vehicles in China this year than they are able to because of slowing demand, a reversal after years of rushing to build new factories, Sanford C. Bernstein analysts said in a report this month.
Toyota bucked the market trend with a 42 per cent gain during the month and boosted sales during the first half by 10 per cent to 512,800 vehicles. Volkswagen's deliveries during the first six months fell 3.9 per cent to 1.74 million.
Christian Klingler, Volkswagen's sales chief, said earlier this month the company was "not immune" from market trends in China and that conditions in South America and Russia market "remain tense."
In Europe, the longest stretch of economic growth for the 19 countries using the euro has put auto sales on more solid footing in countries where Volkswagen dominates.
The German carmaker boosted sales in its domestic market and in broader Western Europe by more than 6 per cent, helped by the VW Passat sedan and Porsche's Macan compact SUV. Toyota's registrations in Europe climbed 5.7 per cent during the period, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association.
In the US, Toyota outpaced the broader market by posting a 5.6 per cent gain, driven by demand for its Lexus NX and Toyota RAV4 compact SUVs. By comparison, the VW, Audi and Porsche brands combined increased sales by 2.4 per cent.
Both companies struggled in Japan during the first half, where demand has been weak since last year's sales-tax increase. Deliveries slumped 8.2 per cent for the Toyota and Lexus brands and 13 per cent for Daihatsu.
Sales in Japan plunged 17 per cent for VW, putting the brand on track to fall behind Mercedes-Benz as the top-selling import for the first time in 16 years.
- Bloomberg
