For the first time in history more cars have been sold in China than in the United States. One of the reasons is that the economic crisishas not hit China as badly as the United States. Although sales are also down compared to the figures of last year there are still manycustomers in Chinese car showrooms.

China has a lot to catch up on. Car analysts point out that in the United States there are 800 cars for 1000 people. In China the samefigure is only 20 cars. For many Chinese buying a car is a big event because most of them have never had one before. It’s not just a transportation tool like in the US or Europe. In China it’s still a status symbol.

With a growth of over 20% per year China has the fastest-growing automobile market in the world. Even though sales have been downdue to the recession they are still better than anywhere else in the world.

In order to encourage growth the government has offered to help motorists and the smaller carmakers of the country. Tax on smallervehicles has also been reduced and there are subsidies for those who want to exchange an old car for a new one. Even thoughmost Chinese buy smaller local models those who can afford it buy American and European cars.