According to the China Automobile Dealers Association (CADA), the Vehicle Inventory Alert Index (VIA) in April, 2019 was 61%, climbing 6.47 percentage points over a year ago, while also rising 5.7 percentage points from the previous month. This was the 16th month in a row in which the national VIA exceeded an official warning threshold.
Compared with the previous month, the inventory turnovers of China-owned brands (2.55) and premium brands & imported brands (1.78) jumped 20.9% and 17.9% respectively, while the number for joint-venture brands edged down 2.2% to 1.74%.
There were 17 brands in total whose inventory turnover in April topped 2.0—the top 5 brands were Changan, Chery, Roewe, Chevrolet and Buick.
Regarding the pretty high VIA and inventory turnover, the CADA pointed out that the buy farming season in northern areas lessened the frequency for consumers buying cars in 4S shops. Besides, parts of consumers in Southern areas were restricted by the custom of Chinese Tomb Sweeping Day.
Aside from the foresaid reasons, the association said consumers are waiting to see what the situation will become after a number of cities and provinces in China implement the Stage 6 Emission Standard after July 1.
