July 2025 Passenger Car Market
Overall Market Retail Trend: Steady Year-on-Year Growth, with a Slight Month-on-Month Decline
In July 2025, the national passenger car market retailed 1.826 million units, a year-on-year increase of 6.3% and a month-on-month decrease of 12.4%. Cumulative retail sales from January to July reached 12.728 million units, a year-on-year increase of 10.1%.
From the beginning of the year to June, the cumulative retail growth rate continued to rise. However, due to a high base, the market slowed down in July, showing a "low in the beginning, high in the middle, and flat" trend. Monthly retail sales were 3% higher than the historical peak in July 2023, demonstrating strong growth momentum.
Luxury Car Market: Poor Performance, Market Share Decline
Among the market segments, the luxury car market performed poorly in July. Retail sales reached only 170,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 20% and a month-on-month decrease of 29%. Its retail market share also fell to 9.3%, a year-on-year decrease of 3 percentage points.
This phenomenon stems, on the one hand, from consumers becoming more rational about luxury brands and no longer blindly pursuing premiums. On the other hand, the continuous emergence of high-end models from domestic brands, such as BYD's high-end series, has attracted many consumers with its advanced new energy technologies and luxurious features, significantly diverting market share from traditional luxury cars.
New Energy Passenger Vehicle Market: Continued Growth, with Slightly Slowing Growth
In the new energy passenger vehicle market, retail sales in July reached 987,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 12.0% and a month-on-month decrease of 11.2%. Cumulative retail sales from January to July reached 6.455 million units, a 29.5% increase.
The continued growth of the new energy vehicle market is driven by strong national support policies for the new energy industry, such as preferential policies such as the purchase tax exemption for new energy vehicles. Furthermore, automakers have continuously increased their R&D investment to enhance product performance and quality, resulting in significant improvements in the range and charging facilities of new energy vehicles.
However, the growth rate of the new energy vehicle market slowed in July compared to previous months, possibly due to market adjustments and the wait-and-see attitude of some consumers.
Powertrain Type Breakdown: Pure Electric Vehicles Show Strong Momentum, While Plug-in Hybrid and Extended-Range Vehicles Faded
By powertrain type, the pure electric vehicle retail market grew by 24.5% year-on-year in July, demonstrating strong growth. This growth is primarily driven by advances in battery technology, which have alleviated range concerns among pure electric vehicles.
Furthermore, their intelligent features have attracted a large number of young consumers. In contrast, the year-on-year growth rate of plug-in hybrid vehicles decreased by 0.2%, and the year-on-year growth rate of extended-range vehicles decreased by 11.4%.
The ratio of pure electric vehicles to extended-range vehicles among new energy vehicles has shifted from 43%:57% last year to 64%:36%, with pure electric vehicles regaining their dominant position in the new energy vehicle market.
Domestic Brands: Significant Retail Sales Growth, Strong Export Performance
Looking at domestic brands, 1.21 million vehicles were sold in July, a year-on-year increase of 14% and a month-on-month decrease of 10%. Domestic brands held a 65.9% domestic retail share that month, a year-on-year increase of 4 percentage points.
From January to July, domestic brands held a 64% retail market share, a 6.9 percentage point increase from the same period last year. Leading traditional automakers such as Geely, Chery, and Changan have performed exceptionally well in their transformation and upgrading efforts. They have actively invested in the new energy sector and launched a series of popular new energy models.
These efforts have not only generated growth in the domestic market but also achieved remarkable success in exports. From January to July, exports of conventional fuel-powered passenger cars totaled 1.76 million, a year-on-year decrease of 9%, while exports of new energy vehicles totaled 1.2 million, a 57% increase. Domestic new energy vehicles accounted for 39.0% of domestic exports.
Mainstream Joint Venture Brands: Sluggish Growth, Lagging Transformation as a Shortcoming
Mainstream joint venture brands sold 450,000 vehicles in July, a year-on-year increase of 1% and a month-on-month decrease of 12%. German brands held a 14.5% share of the market, a 3 percentage point decrease year-on-year, while Japanese brands held a 12.9% share, remaining flat year-on-year. Korean and other Western European brands saw their share increase.
The lagging transition to new energy vehicles by joint venture brands has led to a gradual loss of competitiveness in a rapidly changing market, exacerbated by the shrinking traditional fuel vehicle market.
