China car sales slump 92% in first two weeks of Feb on coronavirus threat

Chinese President Xi Jinping warns coronavirus yet to peak as death toll climbs to over 2,200

China car sales plunged 92 per cent during the first two weeks of February in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

It was even worse in the first week, when nationwide sales tumbled 96 per cent to a daily average of only 811 units, the China Passenger Car Association said in a report released earlier this week. Deliveries this month may slide by about 70%, resulting in a roughly 40% drop in the first two months of 2020, it said. The figures exclude minivans.

“There was barely anybody at car dealers in the first week of February as most people stayed at