Demand in Porsche’s once most important market is plummeting as more and more Chinese switch to local brands. According to the results of the past three quarters of 2024, Porsche sales in China fell by 29 percent, China Daily reports.
Porsche currently has 138 active dealerships in China. By the end of 2026, their number will be reduced to 100. In addition, the German brand will optimize local investments: investments in unprofitable Chinese regions will be reduced, and in profitable ones, where Porsches are still in demand, will be increased. Among the latter are, for example, Shanghai and Beijing.
The main goal is to increase the overall profitability of the network, which will be beneficial both for Porsche itself and for dealers and customers, said Alexander Pollich, head of Porsche China.
The electric Porsche 718 will not appear on time due to batteries Porsche customers are making it difficult for the brand to switch to electric power Porsche will not give up developing new cars with internal combustion engines
China has been Porsche’s largest market for eight years. In 2021, the company sold 95.6 thousand cars there, while 86.1 thousand were sold in Europe, and just over 70 thousand in the USA. In 2022, sales decreased by two percent, although they still exceeded European ones and exceeded 90 thousand cars. In 2023, demand fell to 79 thousand, and 2024 promises to be even worse with a drop of almost a third in January-September.
The Chinese turn towards local brands hit not only Porsche. Sales of BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen collapsed: over five years, their combined share fell from 25 to 14 percent. In the electric car segment, the share of German brands is less than ten percent.
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