BERLIN (Reuters) – German sports automobile maker Porsche AG reported a 28% tumble in 2024 China sales on Monday, as persistent weakness on the planet’s largest automobile market hit German carmakers.

Porsche, majority-owned by Volkswagen, sold 56,887 vehicles in 2024 in China, versus 79,283 in 2023.

The drop weighed on global sales, which were down 3% at 310,718 vehicles compared with 2023. This got here despite growth in its other markets, including an 11% rise at home in Germany.

Chinese consumers are increasingly reluctant to spend money on luxury goods on faltering economic growth resulting from an actual estate crisis within the country.

“Overall, we have now shown ourselves to be extremely robust in a difficult market environment in 2024,” Porsche’s board member Detlev von Platen said in a press release.

Porsche said in October it might pare back its dealership network in China, reflecting persisting weak demand.

Mercedes-Benz’s core automobile sales also fell in 2024, the carmaker said last week, hurt by a 7% drop in China, while China sales for the Volkswagen brand fell 8.3% to 2.2 million vehicles.

(Writing by Miranda Murray; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)