China's passenger-vehicle retail sales reached 1.702 million in September, down 24% from a year earlier, according to preliminary figures from the China Passenger Car Association.
The annual comparison was severe, but it was not the only direction in the data. Retail volume increased 10% from August. For the first nine months of 2026, sales totaled 13.418 million, 21% below the same period last year.
New-energy vehicles gained share
Retail sales of new-energy vehicles, a category that includes battery-electric cars and plug-in hybrids, totaled 1.141 million in September. That was down 12% year over year but up 14% from August.
New-energy vehicles accounted for 67.1% of passenger-vehicle retail sales during the month, the association said. January-through-September retail sales in the category reached 7.816 million, also down 12% from a year earlier.
The wholesale numbers were stronger than the retail comparison. Automakers wholesaled 2.528 million passenger vehicles in September, down 10% year over year and up 7% from August. New-energy vehicle wholesale volume rose 11% on both comparisons to 1.672 million.
Those figures separate factory shipments from sales to consumers. They also show why the 24% retail drop does not describe every part of the market in the same way.
A difficult comparison with last year
The association said September 2025 set an unusually high base because buyers in some regions rushed to make purchases before local subsidies stopped. It also pointed to holiday timing and the shorter final reporting week as factors affecting this year's comparison.
At the same time, CPCA said local consumption measures, manufacturer promotions, and newly launched models supported September demand. It described this year's market as a contest for existing buyers, with most incremental demand flowing to new-energy vehicles while gasoline-car demand remained weak.
Bloomberg's report on the data highlighted the same 24% annual retail decline and 12% drop in new-energy vehicle retail sales. The association's month-over-month and market-share figures add an important qualification: September improved from August even as it remained well below last year's unusually strong level.
