# China Used-Car Sales Fall 11\.19% in August 2026 to 1\.5163 Million Units

China's used-car market recorded 1\.5163 million transactions in August 2026, down 2\.90% month on month and 11\.19% year on year, with transaction value of 96\.972 billion yuan, according to the China Automobile Dealers Association\. Cumulative January-August 2026 volume reached 12\.7911 million units, down 1\.14% year on year\.

By China EV Signal
Published: 2026-10-22T14:40:37.926Z
Updated: 2026-10-22T14:40:46.629Z
Canonical article: https://chinaevsignal.com/news/china-used-car-sales-august-2026-1516-million

## Key takeaways

- August 2026 used-car transactions totaled 1\.5163 million units, down 2\.90% from July and 11\.19% from the same month a year earlier, with transaction value of 96\.972 billion yuan\.
- January-August 2026 cumulative used-car transactions reached 12\.7911 million units, down 1\.14% year on year, a decrease of 147,300 units, with cumulative transaction value of 839\.972 billion yuan\.
- New-energy used-car transactions excluding hybrids totaled 140,500 units in August 2026, down 2\.4% month on month and 5\.3% year on year, while January-August cumulative volume rose 14\.9% year on year to 1\.1231 million units\.

## August volume and value

China's national used-car market recorded 1\.5163 million transactions in August 2026, down 2\.90% from July and 11\.19% from August 2025, according to the China Automobile Dealers Association\. Transaction value for the month was 96\.972 billion yuan\.

The average used-car transaction price in August 2026 was 64,000 yuan, 2,900 yuan lower than in July and 1,600 yuan higher than in the same period a year earlier\.

## January-August cumulative results

Cumulative used-car transactions for January-August 2026 totaled 12\.7911 million units, down 1\.14% year on year, a decline of 147,300 units compared with the same period a year earlier\. Cumulative transaction value reached 839\.972 billion yuan\.

## Segment breakdown

Basic passenger cars accounted for 808,500 used-car transactions in August 2026, down 3\.06% month on month and 15\.16% year on year\. SUVs recorded 197,800 transactions, down 2\.96% month on month and 12\.07% year on year, and MPVs recorded 108,000 transactions, down 3\.53% month on month and 5\.05% year on year\.

Cross-type passenger vehicles recorded 37,200 transactions in August 2026, down 1\.23% month on month and 11\.52% year on year\. Commercial vehicles included 90,500 buses, down 4\.07% month on month and 4\.89% year on year, and 128,800 trucks, down 1\.52% month on month and 14\.0% year on year\.

For January-August 2026, cumulative passenger-car transactions totaled 9\.7894 million units, down 3\.97% year on year\. Basic passenger cars reached 6\.8855 million units, down 5\.79%, while SUVs reached 1\.6881 million units, down 1\.28%\. MPVs rose 6\.87% year on year to 907,600 units, and cross-type passenger vehicles fell 5\.48% to 308,200 units\.

Cumulative commercial-vehicle transactions for January-August 2026 reached 1\.8496 million units, up 1\.24% year on year\. Trucks totaled 1\.0869 million units, down 0\.83%, while buses totaled 762,700 units, up 4\.35%\.

## New-energy used cars

New-energy used-car transactions excluding hybrids totaled 140,500 units in August 2026, down 2\.4% from July and 5\.3% from a year earlier\. January-August 2026 cumulative new-energy used-car transactions reached 1\.1231 million units, up 14\.9% from the same period of 2025\.

## Regional performance

East China recorded the highest regional used-car volume in August 2026 at 431,100 units, down 1\.47% month on month, a decrease of 6,400 units\. Central and South China followed with 419,700 units, down 3\.75% month on month, a decrease of 16,300 units\.

North China recorded 231,500 transactions, down 5\.73% month on month, a decrease of 14,100 units\. Southwest China was the only region to post month-on-month growth, with 207,300 transactions, up 0\.62%, an increase of 1,300 units\. Northeast China recorded 135,400 transactions, down 5\.94% month on month, a decrease of 8,600 units, and Northwest China recorded 91,400 transactions, down 1\.26%, a decrease of 1,200 units\.

## Vehicle age and price distribution

Used cars aged three to six years accounted for 45\.7% of August 2026 transactions, up 0\.6 percentage points month on month and 3\.4 percentage points year on year\. Vehicles under three years old accounted for 31\.9%, up 0\.2 percentage points month on month and 6\.0 percentage points year on year\.

Vehicles aged seven to ten years accounted for 13\.9%, down 0\.5 percentage points month on month and 4\.8 percentage points year on year, while vehicles over ten years old accounted for 8\.5%, down 0\.2 percentage points month on month and 4\.6 percentage points year on year\.

By price, cars under 30,000 yuan accounted for 26\.6% of August 2026 transactions, up 2\.1 percentage points month on month\. The 30,000-50,000 yuan range accounted for 24\.3%, up 2\.0 percentage points, and the 50,000-80,000 yuan range accounted for 21\.5%, down 1\.3 percentage points\.

## Transfer registrations

The used-car transfer registration rate was 30\.80% in August 2026, down 1\.1 percentage points month on month and roughly flat year on year\. Total transfer registrations reached 467,000 vehicles, down 6\.15% month on month and 11\.3% year on year\.

Beijing recorded the highest transfer registration rate at 34\.14%, up 1\.7 percentage points month on month, on 50,100 vehicles\. Guangdong followed at 33\.64%, down 2\.0 percentage points, on 209,800 vehicles, and Jiangsu at 33\.62%, down 1\.1 percentage points, on 81,400 vehicles\. Zhejiang recorded 32\.54%, down 1\.9 percentage points, on 95,100 vehicles, and Hebei recorded 32\.07%, down 0\.3 percentage points, on 98,600 vehicles\.

## Dealer inventory

Dealers surveyed by the association reported an average inventory period of 46 days in September 2026, two days longer than in August 2026\.

## Original publisher

乘联分会. Published: 2026-10-22T08:02:58.000Z