SHANGHAI—A slump in commercial-vehicle demand led China’s automobile industry association on Monday to downgrade its sales forecast, as anti-pandemic measures weighed on the economy and its car market, the world’s largest.
The industry will sell 27 million cars this year, up 3 percent on 2021, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers forecast, cutting its outlook from the 27.5 million sales and 5.4 percent growth it predicted in December.
Weak demand for commercial vehicles, such as buses and trucks, drove the downgrade, data from the association showed. It now expects a 16 percent fall in sales of commercial vehicles to 4 million units.
Overall growth of around 3 percent compares with the 4.4 percent achieved in 2021 and the 1.9 percent fall of 2020….