BEIJING, March 4 (Xinhua) -- China's passenger vehicle sales are expected to register positive growth in 2020 boosted by strong replacement demand and favorable policies, according to a report from an industrial association.
The retail sales of passenger vehicle logged the biggest fall in January, dropping by 20 percent year on year to 1.72 million units, data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed.
Enthusiasm among consumers for cars was partly dampened by lifted expenditure on education and medical care, among other segments which squeezed household consumption, the CPCA said.
However, "the foundation for positive growth in China's auto market is solid," it said in an analysis released on its website.
After 18 years of growth in the fast lane, the Chinese car market has accumulated a large population of car owners. Faster upgrades in products and technology and growing appetite for replacing their cars make favorable conditions for healthy sales growth, CPCA said.
A breakdown of the 21-million-unit predicted the figure would include a replacement of 13.7 million cars and 6.4 million first-time purchases in 2020, given an average car service life of eight years. If the service life is put at 10 years, the new buyers will reach 10 million.
