China August Car Sales Fall, First Decline in 3 Years
China’s passenger-car sales fell in August for the first time in more than three years as the Beijing Olympics and a slumping stock market prompted drivers to delay purchases.
“The August decline is mainly because of one-off factor of the Olympics that deterred consumers’ attention,” said Yale Zhang, director at CSM Asia in Shanghai. “Car sales growth may recover as soon as September as automakers start to add new models and offer incentives again.”
XX Sean’s note — During the Olympics, around Beijing, drivers were only allowed to drive on alternate days. Would you buy a new car if you were only allowed to drive it half the time? Let’s see how September’s sales go.
U.S. Jan-June Oil Demand Falls Most Since 1982
U.S. oil demand during the first half of 2008 fell by an average 800,000 barrels per day compared to the same period a year ago, the biggest volume decline in 26 years, the Energy Information Administration said on Tuesday.
The drop in U.S. oil demand helped offset a 1.3-million-barrel-per-day increase in petroleum consumption in nonindustrial countries during the first half of the year.
As a result, preliminary data shows that global oil consumption rose by 500,000 barrels a day in the 6-month period, the EIA said.
XX Sean’s note. Gasoline prices were rising from January through June … what are they doing now? Still, I don’t think it matters what the news is — bullish or bearish — now that oil has momentum to the downside, a test of $100 a barrel seems inevitable.
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