Sales of vechicles in the U.S. will rise 7.4 percent (15.9 million) over the next three years, according to report by consulting firm Alix Partners.
Sales statistics show that in 2011, sales of light-weight vehicles in U.S. stood at 12.8 million, a whopping increase of 10.3 percent in 2012, according to Autodata. Its research reports predict that car sales may rise 12 percent to 14.3 million in 2012 and 3.5 percent to 14.8 million in 2013. That trails the auto market's pre-recession high of 17.4 million in 2000.
Alix Partners estimates that auto sales in Western Europe may decline 6.9 percent to 13.5 million in 2012 for the fifth consecutive year. Deliveries in the region will rise to 14 million in 2013 while remaining below 2007's peak of 16.8 million through 2021, according to the report.
China, on the otherhand, is expected to see a rise in auto sales to 19.2 million in 2012, about 1 million lower than 2011, Alix Partners predicted. China, which is the world's most populous country, may increase sale of vehicles to 21.4 million in 2012 and 23.5 million in 2012, the report stated.
The Michigan-based research agency also predicted that China's automobile market will keep a stable growth from 2012 to 2015 with an annual growth of 8.1 percent. Sales volume in the country is expected to reach as high as 25,287 million by 2015. Similarly, growth of auto parts and service are expected to top 30 percent and the number of cars in China is expected to grow to more than 145 million by 2015.
More aluminium to be used in cars
Aluminium has been widely used in manufacturing automobile body parts, especially for engine cabin covers, doors and trunk lids in countries such as Europe, North America, Japan and South Korea. Luxury models such as Audi A8, A2, Chrysler's Prowler and Jeep, Subaru's Legacy and Hyundai motors' Genesis have been manufactured using aluminium.
However, China is still far behind in adopting aluminium to manufacture their vehicles. Application of aluminium in automobiles definitely needs technical breakthroughs, and huge-scale application of aluminium sheets in automobile construction can be expected in another five years.
According to CCD Consulting, it has been estimated that the passenger vehicle market will need more than 1.802 million tons of aluminium sheets every year; assuming that aluminium replaces 15 percent of the steel being used for automobile manufacturing by 2015. Even though aluminium will only replace 5 percent of the steel used, demand will be as large as 601,000 tons.
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