Surging fuel prices drag car purchases

　　ABOUT 25 percent of China's potential car buyers will postpone their purchase due to surging fuel prices, according to a new survey from Nielsen.

　　The survey questioned more than 1,500 consumers in China's key cities including Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou following an 18-percent price hike on gasoline and diesel fuels from June.

　　The study discovered 71 percent of respondents did not currently own a car while around a third said they were considering buying one.

　　However, because of the high oil prices, consumers were reconsidering whether or not to purchase a car, the survey found. A further 22 percent said they were no longer in the market to buy a car.

　　Nielsen's report showed of those who remained interested in a car purchase, 18 percent were considering a fuel efficient car because of oil price increases, while a quarter said their higher incomes meant they were unaffected by the oil price rise.

　　"Oil price increases have had an impact on some consumer groups, but consumer demand is still quite strong, particularly among the younger, middle class," said Georgia Zhuang, head of Automotive Research at Nielsen China.

　　"It is at this critical point where manufacturers need to keep themselves updated on consumers' needs and come up with offers or models that suit them under such a challenging environment," said Zhuang.

　　The A class car, such as Santana, was the car type most consumers in Shanghai and Beijing said they were considering buying.

　　About 26 percent of those surveyed said they would buy an A-class sedan, while 17 percent opted for a B-class sedan such as Passat, and 16 percent for an A0 Class such as Volkswagen Polo.

　　Only 7 percent of people planned to buy an A00 Class such as QQ.

　　The survey found Shanghai consumers were the least likely to be put off by oil price increases. It found 33 percent said they would go ahead with their car purchase plan soon.

　　Beijingers tended to be more conservative and had chosen to put their car purchases on hold, while Guangzhou consumers were perhaps the most price sensitive among those surveyed, with 31 percent of consumers deciding that they were no longer in the market.

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　　根据尼尔森的一份最新调查报告显示，大约25%的中国潜在汽车购买者将由于燃油价格的冲击而推迟他们的购买。

　　这份报告调查了包括上海、北京、广州在内的中国主要城市的超过1500名消费者在6月后汽油和柴油价格上涨18%后的反应。

　　研究显示71%的被访者目前没有汽车，而三分之一的被访者正在考虑购买一台。

　　然而，调查也显示，由于油价的高涨，消费者正重新考虑是否要购买一部车。更有22%的人群表示他们将不会买车。

　　尼尔森的报告显示那些仍然想买车的人群当中，因为油价的增长，18%的人正考虑购买一辆燃油经济行轿车，也有四分之一的高收入人群表示他们的购买不会受到油价上涨的影响。

　　“油价增长已经对一些消费群体产生冲击，但是消费需求仍旧十分强大，尤其是在年轻群体和中产阶级中，”尼尔森中国的汽车调查部总监乔治娅.庄说。

　　“正是在这个紧要关头，制造商才更需要不断了解消费者需求，在如此挑战的环境下为他们提供适合的价格和车型，”庄说。

　　A级车，如桑塔纳，是上海和北京的消费者最想购买的车型。

　　大约26%的被调查者表示他们将购买一辆A级轿车，17%选择B级车，如帕萨特，16%选择A0级车，如大众Polo。

　　只有7%的人群计划购买一辆A00级车，如QQ。

　　调查发现上海的消费者最不会被油价增长影响决定。他们中的33%都表示会很快实施他们的购买计划。

　　北京人趋向于更加的保守，选择推迟购车，而广州消费者可能是调查中对价格最为敏感的，他们中的31%决定不再买车。