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According to the insurance figures, the cumulative sales of Lexus from January to October in 2022 were 156001, down 17.67% from the same period last year, of which 13871 were sold in October, up 60.47% from the same period last year. If nothing happens, this will be the first decline in sales since Lexus entered the Chinese market.

In terms of specific models, the best performer is still the ES series, with cumulative sales falling 8.07 per cent year-on-year to 81184 vehicles from January to October, with an increase of 131.43 per cent to 7716 vehicles in October. This was followed by the RX series, where cumulative sales fell 3.83 per cent year-on-year to 40499 vehicles from January to October, including 2.83 per cent to 2882 in October. The third is the NX series, where cumulative sales from January to October fell 54.93% year-on-year to 15898 vehicles, of which October increased 55.96% to 1831 vehicles. In addition, Lexus UX, LS and LM sold 548,399,266 vehicles in October, respectively, with a very low presence in their respective market segments.

Lexus, a luxury brand owned by Toyota Motor Group, is the best performing luxury brand in China, but Lexus has not had a comfortable life in the Chinese market after entering 2022. As for the reasons for the decline in sales, on the one hand, limited by insufficient production capacity and the impact of the epidemic, there are production obstacles and freight delays, but more importantly, affected by the overall decline in traditional fuel vehicles, Lexus is also inevitably involved in the competition between fuel vehicles and electric vehicles.

Toyota is plagued by supply chain problems, resulting in a shortage of Lexus. According to Toyota's latest shutdown plan, four production lines at three local factories will be suspended in December, involving Lexus ES, RX, UX, NX and other models. Earlier this year, the Lexus website announced: "We apologize for the new LX announced on January 12, because it takes a lot of time to deliver after ordering. If you buy from now on, it may take us about four years to deliver your car. We apologize for the new NX announced on October 7, 2021, as it will take a long time to deliver after ordering. If you plan to buy it, please wait a year or more before you can deliver your car. " In other words, it takes at least a year to book a Lexus NX, while a Lexus LX won't pick up until 2026. "We will consider our efforts to shorten delivery time, so please understand," Lexus said.

Interestingly, falling sales did not stop Lexus from rising prices. On August 12, the new Lexus ES officially launched 11 models with a price range of 29.69-488900 yuan. It is understood that Lexus launched the ES medium-term modified model in August 2021, with a price range of 29.49-488900 yuan. Taken together, the prices of all versions of the new car have increased in varying degrees, with a maximum increase of 4000 yuan.

Why does Lexus still have the courage to raise prices? At the end of 2019, the State Administration of Market Supervision and Administration imposed a fine of 87.613 million yuan on Toyota for monopolizing the market, such as price increases. All along, the price increase has always been an indelible label on Lexus. Although the penalty has a certain warning effect on Lexus, it has not changed the behavior of Lexus price monopoly.

Perhaps, in the context of the supply chain and rising raw material prices, the increase in product prices is inevitable, but in the context of the rapid growth of new energy vehicles and reduced price sales of traditional luxury cars, it is impossible for Lexus to sell cars again by raising prices, and it is even more difficult for Lexus to reach a historical peak again.

At present, Lexus, as a luxury brand, the only product highlights can no longer support exaggerated price increases. It is true that Lexus has had a brilliant experience, but we must also face up to the fact that Lexus is lagging behind in the times. According to the plan, Lexus plans to provide pure electric versions of all its models by 2030 and take the lead in selling 100% pure electric vehicles in China, Europe and North America, reaching the global sales target of 1 million units. In addition, Lexus plans to achieve 100% global sales of pure electric vehicles by 2035. However, the transformation of Lexus is not an easy task. In the context of the rapid rise of new energy, the road for Lexus in the future will become more and more difficult.

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