AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)06/10 Report--

While the domestic car market is depressed, luxury car sales maintain the momentum of growth, in contrast to the market environment, but Audi's sales have declined for two months in a row. Audi's sales in China fell 11.5 per cent in April from a year earlier, compared with a 7.4 per cent drop in May to 47927 vehicles. So far this year, Audi sold 253625 vehicles in the first five months of this year, down 1.9 per cent from a year earlier.

In the past, the market sales of Audi's old volume models were stable, but the performance after the replacement was not very satisfactory. Audi officials say the adverse effects of the upgrading of Audi's A6L and Q3 models continue, and tariff entanglements have added to the uncertainty.

Audi Q5L sold 6356 vehicles in April, down 40% from a year earlier and 27.3% from January to April, to 31456, according to the federation. After the replacement, Audi A6L sold 6101 vehicles in April, down nearly 50% from a year earlier, while it totaled 36852 vehicles from January to April, down 22% from a year earlier.

As Audi's two major sales pillars, Q5 and A6L sales are lower than expected, lagging behind Mercedes-Benz, BMW competitors.

In fact, the growth of first-tier luxury brands so far this year is relatively weak, on the contrary, there will be a substantial growth in the second line, but it also shows the phenomenon of polarization. For example, in the first five months of this year, Lexus sales rose 27 per cent year-on-year, Volvo 9.5 per cent; Cadillac grew in a wave of price cuts, with sales up 18.9 per cent year-on-year in May and down 5 per cent to 93382 vehicles from January to May.

Audi has announced a strong product offensive for the Chinese market, introducing 13 new cars this year to compete with Mercedes-Benz and BMW. The new cars include the new Q3, which is already on the market, with an official price of 27.18-359800 yuan. Q8, A7 and Audi e-tron electric cars will also be available in the second half of the year.

In the face of sluggish sales, Audi is expected to launch a price reduction strategy. The average transaction price of Audi brand dealers in 2018 was 317000 yuan, ranking fourth among all luxury car brands, while the third place was BMW brand, with an average transaction price of 411000 yuan.

Industry insiders said, "Audi is expected to be the same as the same period last year or even increase; at present, the trend of quality improvement in China's auto market has been obvious, after entering the automobile society, it will develop to high-end on a certain basis."

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