Chinese car sales on the rise in SA

Chery and Haval are the top sellers while Omoda and Jaecoo passed 1000 new vehicles sold in June

- Eyaaz Matwadia

Chinese car sales continue to rise in South Africa, with more brands looking to enter the market.

Chery and GWM were the top-selling Chinese manufacturers in June, with the former selling 2 101 new vehicles and the latter selling 2 288, according to data from the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa. The two brands ranked sixth and seventh overall in new vehicle sales for the month, only falling behind legacy brands Toyota, Suzuki, Volkswagen Ford and Hyundai.

Chery relaunched in South Africa in 2021 and GWM brought its SUV brand, Haval, in the same year. The success of these two paved the way for the likes of Omoda, Jaecoo and Jetour also to enter the country.

Omoda and Jaecoo passed the 1 000-vehicle mark in June while Jetour sold 683 new vehicles and Baic sold 232.

Many industry watchers believe the price point is the main reason Chinese vehicles are doing so well in South Africa.

But Shannon Gahagan, the national brand and marketing manager at Omoda and Jaecoo South Africa, has attributed the success of these brands rather to what is being offered for the price.