Japanese Automakers Left Detroit in the Dust Last Month in China

Over the past couple of years, automotive sales in China have been as unpredictable as the latest Hollywood dating story. Roughly two years ago, we saw a sales slump over the summer, only to then witness a spike as the government cut the vehicle purchase tax in half. Years ago, a territorial dispute caused a huge backlash toward Japanese autos by Chinese consumers, and a tsunami-inducing earthquake in Japan rattled suppliers and caused sales to plunge -- you just never know what's going to happen with sales in China.

With those developments largely in the rearview mirror and after a slow start to this year, sales are starting to pick up in China. In July, Japanese autos seriously outpaced their Detroit counterparts in the Middle Kingdom.

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) sold more than 84,000 vehicles in China in July, a 7% decline from the prior year. That same decline holds true for the automaker's year-to-date sales, which nearly hit 622,000 during the first seven months. And when you look across the board, it's pretty clear where the pressure is coming from: Changan Ford Automobile, the joint venture responsible for selling Ford's passenger cars. Sales were down 16% in July, driven by weaker sales for its top two models, the Escort and Focus.

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Source: Fool.com