Porsche’s China sales plunge as electric Taycan falls flat

BEIJING: Porsche AG’s sales plummeted in China during the third quarter as a decline in luxury spending and a shift to local electric brands in Asia’s biggest economy weighed on Europe’s high-end carmakers.

Volkswagen AG’s luxury sports-car brand delivered 13,279 vehicles in China, about 19% fewer than the same period last year, the company said Friday.

The decline was led by a steep drop in sales of its Macan, Panamera and electric Taycan models.

The slump in China is taking a heavy toll across Germany’s auto industry, with BMW AG and Mercedes-Benz Group AG also reporting declines.

At the same time, the carmakers, which long dominated sales of high-end petrol-powered cars there, are falling behind in the shift to EVs to local manufacturers like BYD Co. that have seized the upper hand with innovative and affordable plug-in models.

Deliveries of the Taycan, one of two fully electric models Porsche has on offer, sank 47% in the period.

The company didn’t give sales figures for its second EV, the Macan, as deliveries of the model only started late last month.

The results underscore Porsche’s decision to walk back its EV target earlier this year, saying that while EVs could account for more than 80% of new-vehicle sales in 2030, it’s no longer the company’s concrete goal.

Sales have also been hurt by supply chain issues, including flooding that disrupted a specialty aluminum provider, and a refresh of its model portfolio, the company said.

Porsche’s global deliveries were down 7% in the first nine months of the year, led by a 29% drop in China and a 5% decline in North America.

Modest growth in Europe and emerging markets have offset some of the decline.

With China’s rapid shift to EVs, intensifying local competition and an economic slowdown, CEO Oliver Blume began to push volumes to other markets this year.

The company is one of the European carmakers at risk of retaliatory duties from Beijing after European Union member states voted to impose tariffs on electric vehicles from China.