VW executive: Hope returning to Chinese market

Volkswagen AG expects the Chinese car market to return to last year's level by early summer because the country's vehicle sales have shown signs of fast recovery.

The world's largest carmaker estimated that China's vehicle sales will rise to around 1 million in March, up from 250,000 in February when coronavirus was in full swing in the country.

"There are more and more signs that business is recovering. By the middle of the year, we could be back to last year's level. Hope is returning to the Chinese market," said Volkswagen Group China CEO Stephan Woellenstein.

So far more than 95 percent of Volkswagen Group's 3,000-plus dealers have reopened their showrooms. The number of customer visits are currently about 60 percent of the normal level.

The group has resumed production of vehicles and components at 22 of their 24 manufacturing bases across China.

Woellenstein said some are running at a reduced capacity but they are ready to increase production when demand picks up.

He said the company is sticking to the 2020 plan it announced last year to invest more than 4 billion euros ($4.4 billion) in China with its partners. Around 40 percent of the investment will go into electric vehicles.

"We assume that the recovery will continue and that we will be operating in a normal market environment again in 2021," said Woellenstein.

"And China will not lose its status as a powerhouse of the global automotive industry in the long term. The trends of electromobility and digitalization will be shaped here."

Starting this year, Volkswagen will start to produce in China electric vehicles on its purpose-built platform. The group plans to sell 1.5 million electric cars in 2025 in the country.