The Buick Envision sold big in China in October. The company reported sales of the SUV were up 28%.
For some makers, China has cooled down; however, General Motors and Ford continue to enjoy impressive sales results in 2016. GM surpassed 3 million vehicles for the year in October as Ford continued its run of double-digit sales jumps last month.
With its eye on a new record, GM China reported sales increased 5.7% during October to 345,733 vehicles in China. In the first 10 months of 2016, the jump in retail sales by GM and its joint ventures was even higher – 8.6% on an annual basis – raising the total to 3,064,048 units.
“GM and our joint ventures reached 3 million deliveries in record time, as sales remained strong across many segments,” said GM Executive Vice President and GM China President Matt Tsien.
“We are pleased with the overall performance of our mainstream Cadillac, Buick and Chevrolet brands as well as the Baojun and Wuling brands in the highly competitive marketplace.”
GM reported that Cadillac deliveries more than doubled to 12,502 units in October from a year earlier. It was the fourth consecutive month that growth topped 50%. Sales of the XT5 exceeded 4,700 units while demand for the ATS-L and XTS advanced more than 70% from the previous October.
Buick deliveries in October were up 3.4% on an annual basis to 105,071 units. The Excelle GT continued to be very popular, with demand surpassing 37,000 units. The brand’s best-selling SUV, the Envision, maintained its strong momentum as well, with deliveries increasing 28% year over year to 22,061 units.
(Slowing sales fail to dampen GM’s record earnings. Click Here for details.)
Deliveries of the Verano family topped 17,000 units. Buick will launch the new-generation GL8 luxury MPV later this week.
Chevrolet had a third consecutive month of sales growth in October, as deliveries increased 2% compared with the year-ago period to 52,195 units. It benefitted from the ongoing popularity of the Cruze family and the launch in September of the Cavalier, whose demand exceeded 11,000 units in its first full month on the market.
Chevrolet recently announced that it will introduce more than 20 totally new or refreshed products in China by the end of 2020.
The Ford Escort continues to be one of the automaker's strongest sellers in China.
Baojun deliveries in October totaled 67,169 units, an increase of 30% year over year. Demand for the Baojun 730 MPV was up 14% from the previous October. Baojun 310 hatchback deliveries exceeded 11,000 units in its first full month on the market.
Wuling deliveries totaled 108,760 units, a 6.9% decline on an annual basis. Despite continued contraction of the mini-commercial vehicle segment, Wuling deliveries increased slightly from the previous month.
(For more on Avenir, Click Here.)
GM is also pushing ahead with a product offensive of non-Chevrolet branded vehicles in China. Last week, Buick launched the GL8 Avenir, which will be the first model under Buick’s recently announced global Avenir sub-brand.
The GL8 nameplate has been a key member of Buick’s line-up in China since it first went on sale in 2000. Last month, Buick announced its new global Avenir sub-brand, which is designed to grow with the needs of future luxury vehicle buyers.
Meanwhile, Ford and its joint ventures sold 107,618 vehicles in October, up 14% with Mustang, Explorer, New Edge, Focus and Escort driving the jump. Changan Ford Automobile sold 82,368 vehicles, up 10% and Jiangling Motor Corporation sold 23,949 vehicles, up 29%.
“We had a strong October and we are headed for our best year ever for sales in China,” said Peter Fleet, vice president of Marketing, Sales and Service, Asia Pacific. “We are seeing the benefits of a much more exciting lineup and an ever stronger focus on the wants and needs of Chinese customers.”
Mustang sales continued their blistering pace last month with an increase of 60% compared with October 2015. Ford’s SUVs also continue to perform well as Edge sales rose 93% and Explorer sales jumped 30%.
(To see more about Ford’s 24% September sales jump, Click Here.)
Ford’s small sedans remain strong sellers despite a market shift toward sport-utes, crossovers and large cars. Ford reported Focus sales up 15% and Escort up 34%.