China’s auto industry executives met with government officials over the weekend to talk about ways to promote increased auto sales in rural areas, sources familiar with the matter said.
The country’s car manufacturers are grappling with the pressures of falling sales in the world’s biggest car market and are looking for new policies.
A senior official at the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), Zeng Guang, confirmed to Reuters that the meeting was organized in Beijing from the institution’s magazine Auto Review.
He declined to provide specifics of the talks but said participants had agreed that the recent sales decrease was expected given how China’s automobile market was developing.
Sources told Reuters the meeting was titled ‘cars for the rural regions’, highlighting the need to target earnings beyond the nation’s cities in which sales have been particularly weak.
Sources with knowledge of the assembly said government officials told participants that they were considering policies to expand the second hand car market in rural areas and to enhance vehicle retirement policies. They also urged companies to develop electric vehicle models which are acceptable for the rural industry.
