Growth in the Chinese auto market has slowed more rapidly than expected in recent months and preliminary data suggests August car sales have fallen by as much as 10 per cent year on year.
Signs of a worse-than- expected slowdown in the Chinese car market come at a time when General Motors and other troubled carmakers are counting on growth in China to cushion the effect of problems in the US market.
Rick Wagoner, GM chairman and chief executive, told the Financial Times last month that he expected emerging markets to contribute 80 per cent of global car industry growth in the next five years, and he was particularly optimistic about China, GM’s second-largest market.