China auto show reports surging sales amid price war

CHANGCHUN - A Chinese auto show has reported surging sales of 5.7 billion yuan ($922 million) as car dealers cut prices to clear inventories.

A total of 28,627 vehicles were sold at the 12th China Changchun International Automobile Expo, which concluded on Sunday in the northeastern city of Changchun, up from 19,100 last year, according to the organizers.

One of five major auto shows in China, the event has been a barometer for the Chinese car market. A total of 146 brands were present at this year's show with 1,226 models.

Organizers said more than 70 percent of the cars shown this year were priced below market price, indicating an intense price war amid the cooling domestic market.

After years of explosive growth, the Chinese auto market saw sales up by a mere 1.4 percent year on year in the first half of 2015, when around 12 million vehicles were sold, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Sales in June fell by 5.3 percent month on month to 1.8 million, down by 2.3 percent compared with the same period last year. Industry insiders predict this year's growth to be a tepid 3 percent instead of the expected 7 percent.