While looking for some files recently, I came across an old PowerPoint presentation that I had given five years ago that talked about what China would be like in 2010. One bullet said that the country had already emerged as the leading market for cell phones, steel, and coal. The second one said that by 2010, China would be the No. 1 market for cars and No. 2 for PCs. Well, it has already earned the top spot for both.
On this topic, there was an interesting piece on Chinese consumer spending last Thursday in The New York Times. In the third quarter, there were 7.2 million PCs sold in China compared to 6.6 million in the U.S. It looks like Chinese buyers will buy 2.5 million more cars and light trucks than Americans–12.8 million to 10.3 million. Car sales there rose 42% in the first 11 months of 2009; they were up 96% in November alone. Meanwhile, U.S. car sales were down 37% last month.
China is also the top market for appliances. By the end of this month, Chinese consumers will have purchased 185 million refrigerators, washing machines, and other appliances this year. By contrast, Americans will have bought 137 million over the same period.
The Chinese may yet overtake their U.S. counterparts in credit card spending, too. The Times notes that spending rose 40% for the first three quarters of this year compared to the same period in 2008. You may be surprised to know that one out of eight Chinese consumers has a credit card, while the U.S. averages two per person.
What’s most amazing, though, is that incomes are still very low relative to the North America and Western Europe. Annual income for China’s urban areas averages $2,775 per person. It drops to $840 in rural areas.
