Although sales in the Chinese automobile market in the first half of year have fallen far of industry expectations, car imports have continued to grow steadily. According to China Automobile Trading Co. figures quoted by Beijing Business Today, automobile imports reached 395,000 in the first half of the year, 36 percent higher than the first half of 2010.

Sedans accounted for 150,500 of imports from January to June, growing 34.3 percent, while SUVs and minivans making up 227,900 units (up 37.4 percent) and 19,900 units (up 33.4 percent), respectively. When comparing engine sizes, imports of small SUVs (2.5 L to 3.0 L) showed marked increase from 2010. Imports of small sedans under 1.5 L were also much higher than in 2010.

Head of China Automobile Trading Co.'s marketing and sales department Wang Cun pointed out that SUVs made up a greater portion of imports than ever before, with luxury SUVs imports growing over 115.8 percent. BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Subaru were among the most imported brands.

Source:gasgoo