Volkswagen Group China Deliveries Fell 36.6 Percent, Global Sales Dropped 8.6 Percent

Volkswagen Group deliveries in China fell 36.6 percent year-on-year to 424,300 vehicles in the April-June quarter. The decline contributed to an 8.6 percent drop in the company's global sales for the period even as deliveries rose in Europe and the Americas.

Volkswagen Group, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Porsche each recorded China sales declines between 30 percent and 41 percent in the quarter, according to data compiled across the four companies.

All four also posted more than 20 percent year-on-year drops in China for the first half of the year. Volkswagen Group said it would cut its model lineup by up to half after the results. Porsche described the market environment as challenging.

Mercedes-Benz cited a weaker overall market and macroeconomic environment. China passenger car sales fell 24 percent year-on-year to nearly 8.3 million units in the first half, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers reported. AlixPartners forecasts light-vehicle sales in China will decline about 10 percent for the full year.

Stephen Dyer, Asia-Pacific leader of the automotive practice at AlixPartners, said foreign automakers will have to fight for every share of the market as Chinese brands gain preference. German automakers remain stronger in internal combustion engine vehicles than in electric vehicles at a time when EV sales in China outpace conventional models.

Lei Xing, an independent auto analyst, said the latest quarterly declines were among the steepest recorded for the German automakers in China and that the German groups are bearing most of the brunt.