# China Passenger Car Retail Falls 26% in Oct 1-18; NEV Wholesale Rises 5%

China's passenger car retail sales totaled 789,000 units in October 1-18, down 26% year on year, while NEV wholesale volume reached 655,000 units, up 5%, according to the China Passenger Car Association\. NEV retail penetration stood at 65\.9% for the period\.

By China EV Signal
Published: 2026-10-21T14:11:20.429Z
Updated: 2026-10-21T14:11:20.430Z
Canonical article: https://chinaevsignal.com/news/china-passenger-car-retail-oct-1-18-2026-nev-wholesale

## Key takeaways

- China passenger car retail sales reached 789,000 units in October 1-18, down 26% year on year and up 2% from the same period last month\.
- NEV wholesale volume reached 655,000 units in October 1-18, up 5% year on year, with wholesale penetration of 76\.8%\.
- China vehicle exports totaled 8\.63 million units in January-September, up 52% year on year, exceeding full-year 2025 export volume\.

## Weekly Retail and Wholesale

China passenger car retail sales reached 789,000 units in October 1-18, down 26% from the same period a year earlier and up 2% from the same period last month, according to the China Passenger Car Association\. Year-to-date cumulative retail sales stood at 14\.123 million units, down 22%\.

Wholesale volume from passenger car manufacturers reached 853,000 units in October 1-18, down 20% year on year and down 3% from the same period last month\. Cumulative wholesale volume for the year reached 20\.589 million units, down 6%\.

Average daily retail sales were 33,000 units in the first week of October, 58,000 units in the second week and 47,000 units in the third week, down 25%, 22% and 29% year on year respectively\. Average daily wholesale volume was 21,000 units, 60,000 units and 67,000 units in the three weeks, down 32%, 7% and 22% year on year\. Wholesale of fuel vehicles by manufacturers fell 55% in the first three weeks of October\.

## NEV Retail and Wholesale

NEV retail sales reached 520,000 units in October 1-18, down 13% year on year and down 2% from the same period last month, with retail penetration of 65\.9%\. Cumulative NEV retail sales for the year reached 8\.278 million units, down 13%\.

NEV wholesale volume from manufacturers reached 655,000 units in October 1-18, up 5% year on year and up 1% from the same period last month\. Wholesale penetration was 76\.8%, and cumulative NEV wholesale volume for the year reached 12\.104 million units, up 9%\.

In the first two weeks of October, production of pure fuel light vehicles reached 153,000 units, down 43% year on year and down 16% from the same period last month\. Production of hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles totaled 152,000 units, down 18% year on year and up 2% from the same period last month\.

## Production and Industry Indicators

China produced 3\.06 million vehicles in September, down 6% year on year, including 1\.87 million NEVs, up 17%, and 1\.19 million fuel vehicles, down 28%\. NEV penetration in September production was 61%\.

Production in January-September reached 23\.37 million vehicles, down 4%, including 12\.46 million NEVs, up 12%, at 53% penetration, and 10\.92 million fuel vehicles, down 17%\.

The automotive industry's capacity utilization rate was 69% in January-September, down 4\.2 percentage points year on year, and 66\.2% in the third quarter, down 7\.1 percentage points\. Fixed-asset investment in the automotive industry fell 6\.3% in January-September, compared with an average decline of 7\.2% across industries\. Automotive industrial value added grew 6\.7% in September and 7\.3% in January-September\.

## Consumption and Exports

China's retail sales of consumer goods totaled 37\.0001 trillion yuan in January-September, up 1\.1% year on year, of which automotive consumption was 2\.9427 trillion yuan, down 15%\. In September, retail sales of consumer goods totaled 4\.2433 trillion yuan, up 1\.1%, with automotive consumption of 364\.1 billion yuan, down 21%\.

China exported 8\.63 million vehicles in January-September, up 52% year on year, exceeding full-year 2025 export volume\. September exports reached 1\.182 million vehicles, up 55% year on year and up 13% from the previous month\.

Vehicle export value totaled $149\.8 billion in January-September, up 54%, and $20\.8 billion in September, up 62% year on year and up 13% month on month\. Auto parts exports totaled $79\.6 billion in January-September, up 10%, and $9\.77 billion in September, up 24% year on year and up 7% month on month\.

Vehicle exports are expected to exceed $200 billion this year, with NEV exports expected to exceed $110 billion\. From April 2027, the value-added tax rebate rate on NEV exports will be cut from 13% to 9%, leaving a buffer period of more than six months\.

## Pickup Sales

China's pickup truck market sold 67,000 units in September, up 42\.5% year on year and up 23% month on month\. Pickup sales in January-September totaled 522,000 units, up 19\.2%\.

Pickup exports reached 47,000 units in September, up 85% year on year and up 24% month on month\. Exports in January-September totaled 313,000 units, up 50%\.

Pickup exports accounted for 45% of total pickup sales in 2024, 50% in 2025, 55% cumulatively in 2026 and 71% in September 2026\.

New energy pickup sales reached 9,000 units in September, up 98% year on year and up 4% month on month\. Sales in January-September totaled 71,000 units, up 33%\. New energy pickup sales were 21,000 units in 2024, up 170%, and 73,000 units in 2025, up 243%\.

Within September new energy pickup sales, BYD sold 4,000 pickups overseas, Geely Radar sold 2,068 electric pickups, Zhengzhou Nissan sold 1,936 new energy pickups and Changan sold 452 extended-range pickups\.

## Company coverage

- [BYD news](https://chinaevsignal.com/manufacturers/byd)
- [Geely news](https://chinaevsignal.com/manufacturers/geely)
- [Changan news](https://chinaevsignal.com/manufacturers/changan)

## Original publisher

乘联分会. Published: 2026-10-21T08:10:01.000Z