Cui Dongshu: World car sales reached 13.96 million units in January-February 2026, with China accounting for nearly 30% of the market share.

Secretary-General Cui Dongshu of the China Automobile Association sent out a document stating that global car sales are expected to reach 96.89 million units in 2025, a 6% year-on-year increase. In February 2026, global car sales reached 6.74 million units, a 2% decrease compared to the same period last year. From January to February 2026, global car sales reached 13.96 million units, a slight 0.1% increase compared to the same period last year. Due to the slower-than-expected growth of the Chinese car market, the growth rate of global car sales slowed significantly in January and February 2026. The Chinese car market has shown overall positive trends in recent years, with a continuously increasing market share. China's global market share has been rising since 2020, reaching 33.8% in 2023, 34.2% in 2024, and 35.4% in 2025. However, in 2026, China's market share decreased to 29.7%, a significant drop from the previous year. The international expansion of domestic brands has been successful, with many countries still having low car ownership rates and large market potential, providing opportunities for growth. In the first two months of 2026, global car sales increased by 0.1%, with Chinese car sales declining by 9%, Indian car market sales increasing by 11%, Thai car market sales increasing by 64%, and Russian market sales declining by 7%. Some South American markets showed good performance as well. The potential for Chinese car companies in many underdeveloped small countries remains significant. In terms of global performances of various groups, the Chinese domestic brands have seen a comprehensive improvement in their global market share. The market share of the leading international car companies has decreased significantly, while Chinese car companies have generally performed well. Geely, Chery, and BYD Company Limited have shown strong performances. The development of electric vehicles has led some international car companies to decline gradually. Apart from the temporary strength in the US market and the good performance of brands like Suzuki in India, there has been a significant overall decline in market share for other international brands. 1. Monthly Trend of Global Car Sales Since 2025, the global car market has been performing well overall, with each month better than the same period last year. However, in February 2026, due to the Chinese New Year falling in February, there was a significant decline in the Chinese car market sales, impacting the global market growth. Global car sales were at 96.89 million units in 2025, a 6% increase year-on-year. In February 2026, global car sales were at 6.74 million units, a 2% decrease compared to the previous year. From January to February 2026, global car sales reached 13.96 million units, a slight 0.1% increase compared to the same period last year. After consecutive declines from 2018 to 2020, the car sales of major countries in the world reached 81.35 million units in 2021, a 4% increase year-on-year, showing a good recovery after the pandemic. However, in 2022, car sales dropped to 80.18 million units, a 1% decrease compared to the previous year, and slightly higher than the sales in 2020. In 2023, global car sales reached 89.01 million units, an 11% increase year-on-year. The total sales in 2024 surpassed 91.77 million units, exceeding the levels seen in 2019 and returning to a reasonable level. In 2025, the global economy performed well, with booming car markets in India, Vietnam, and the US, driving car sales to reach a record high of 96.89 million units. 2. Annual Trend of Global Car Sales In the table above, the global car sales mainly cover the sales in 70 countries, with around 90 million units sold in these core countries in 2019, which can be tracked monthly. Due to frequent conflicts, the data for the past few months worldwide has been slower. There are another 100 countries where only annual sales can be tracked, totaling around 3 million units in recent years, which is around 3% of the 80 million units sold in the 70 major countries, making a minimal impact. Looking at the global sales represented by major countries, there has been a downward trend post-2018, hitting a low point in 2020, starting to recover in 2021, and showing a 6% growth in sales in 2025, with a significant contribution from the 9% growth in the Chinese car market. This year, China's overall performance in the car market is lower than expected, putting pressure on global market growth. 3. China Maintains Leading Position in 2026 Sales The Chinese car market has an enormous influence on the global car market. From 2016 to 2018, China's car sales accounted for around 30% of the world market share. In 2019, it dropped to 29% but still maintained an absolute advantage. From 2020 to 2021, China's market share rose to 32%. In 2022, China's market share increased to 33.5%. In 2023, it maintained a market share of 33.8%. In 2024, China reached a 34.2% share of the world car market. In 2025, China's market share reached 35.4%. At the beginning of 2026, China had a market share of 29.7%, which was lower due to the anomaly of the Chinese New Year. With the gradual recovery of policy stimulus effects, the Chinese car market is expected to continue to strengthen from late March onwards. 4. Developing Countries' Markets Strengthen Significantly Looking at the sales of various countries globally, the markets of developed countries in Europe and America are relatively performing well. The ability to afford cars is a stark reality, as vehicles need to be cost-effective. The Russian market gradually recovered in 2023-2024, leading to high sales and profits for Chinese domestic car companies. However, in 2025, the Russian market saw a significant decline, with a market share dropping to 1.5%. In 2026, the Russian market rebounded, driving positive trends for Chinese domestic car companies. The Chinese car market has shown overall positive trends in recent years, with a continuously increasing market share. China's global market share has been rising since 2020, reaching 33.8% in 2023, 34.2% in 2024, and 35.4% in 2025. However, in 2026, China's market share decreased to 29.7%, a significant drop of 5.7 percentage points from 2025. 5. Trends in Various Countries' Markets In 2026, global car sales grew by 0.1%, with Chinese car sales declining by 9% to 415 million units and US sales declining by 2%. From January to February 2026, global car sales grew by 0.1%, with Chinese car sales declining by 9%, Indian car market sales increasing by 11%, Thai car market sales increasing by 64%, Russian market sales declining by 7%, and some South American markets performing well. 6. Trends in China's Global Market Share In 2025, the global car market further diversified, with China gradually returning to normal, along with increasing exports, leading to a continuous rise in China's market share. At the beginning of 2026, with the gradual progress of the two new subsidy policies, China's car sales saw a significant decline, with market share dropping to 27% in February. 7. Characteristics of Monthly Trends in Various Countries' Car Sales By looking at the monthly growth trends in car sales in various countries worldwide, a relatively balanced trend between months is maintained. However, various factors such as seasonality and annual factors lead to significant differences in the trends of different countries. Given that the Chinese car market is still in the phase of private car popularization, there is a relatively strong performance at the beginning and end of the year and a relatively softer trend in the middle of the year. In contrast, the Indian car market shows strength at the beginning and stability in the middle of the year. 8. Performance of International Groups in Global Market Share The graph shows the trends in global sales share for various major automotive groups. From the current comprehensive performance of these groups, the market share of top international car companies has significantly decreased, while Chinese car companies have generally shown strong performances. With the rise in international market positions of China, Russia, and India, along with the good market performance of Asian companies like Geely, Chery, Suzuki, the trends in production and sales performance of East Asian companies look promising. European car companies have shown generally poor performances. In the first two months of this year, two Chinese car companies have shown strong market share among the top 10 global car companies, with Geely ranking 6th and Chery ranking 10th, whereas BYD Company Limited dropped to the 11th position globally. 9. Performance of International Groups in Various Regional Market Shares There is an upward trend in the global market share of Chinese domestic brands, along with overall improvements in market shares for Geely, Chery, BYD Company Limited, SAIC, Changan, and others. Except for Toyota, Suzuki, and Tata, the market share of other international brands has seen a significant decline in 2026. Asian automotive companies have shown strength, with Toyota Group performing relatively well in 2026, with a 0.3 percentage point increase compared to 2019, maintaining a market share of around 11.5% globally. This is primarily due to Toyota's strong performance in Europe and North America. Hyundai Motor Company's performance has been stable, reaching 7.7% in 2026, which is on par with 2019. While the Hyundai Group has performed well in North America and other markets in Asia, its weak product lineup has resulted in a weaker trend in China. Suzuki has shown strong market performance, especially in markets like India and Japan. Honda Group, however, has shown a poor performance in 2026 compared to 2019, with a 2.3% decline, primarily due to a weak performance in the Chinese market. European car companies have shown overall weaker performances in 2026, especially Renault-Nissan and Stellantis Volkswagen, which have seen weaker performances with a decrease of around 3 percentage points compared to 2019. This loss signifies a significant pressure in the Chinese market, even though the overall performance in other global markets of Volkswagen Group has shown a great improvement, especially in the markets of the Southern Hemisphere.