China car sales rise as dealers offer discounts

Beijing

CHINA'S passenger-vehicle sales rose for the eighth time in nine months, with General Motors Co and Toyota Motor Corp reporting increased deliveries in April as dealers offered discounts to reduce stockpiles.

Retail sales of cars, SUVs and multi-purpose vehicles climbed 6.4 per cent to 1.72 million units last month, according to the China Passenger Car Association. Deliveries gained 6.7 per cent to 7.36 million units in the first four months of this year.

Dealers in China offered average discounts of 18 per cent off the carmakers' recommended selling price, according to estimates by Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Inventory levels - measured by the number of days a dealer needs to sell its stock - have remained above what's considered healthy for eight consecutive months, data from the China Automobile Dealer Association showed. China's government halved the purchase tax for smaller-engine models as at October to p…