Passenger car sales in China rose 11% in 2023, while sales of new energy models surged by 38%, according to the China Association of Car Manufacturers.
Sales of passenger cars reached 26.1 million in last year, compared to 23.6 million in 2022, the association reported.
Within the passenger cars segment, sport utility vehicle sales increased 18% to 13.2 million, and sales of cars increased 3% to 11.5 million. Multi-purpose vehicle sales jumped 18% to 1.1 million. The only category with a decline was crossover vehicles, with an 18% drop to 265,000.
Commercial vehicle sales in China jumped 22% to 403.1 million last year. Trucks were the dominant category, with sales rising 22% to 3.5 million. Bus sales rose 21% to 492,000.
Sales of new energy vehicle passenger cars were also up at almost 9.1 million, compared to 6.5 million in 2022. In the category, sales of battery electric vehicles rose 24% to 6.3 million, while sales of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles jumped 84% to 2.8 million.
Sales of new energy commercial vehicles jumped 32% to 447,000. The category is dominated in China by battery electric vehicles, which jumped 29% in sales to 427,000. Sales of PHEV commercial vehicles skyrocketed 311% to 15,000.