BERLIN — China has become the most important single market for Germany's automotive industry. Even amidst headwinds from the global COVID-19 pandemic, there is no end to this development as recent figures of Germany's top three car manufacturers BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen show.

While most global markets declined in 2020, car sales of BMW and Daimler in China increased by 7.4 percent and 11.7 percent respectively, both marking historic sales records during the crisis-ridden year.

China was a "driving force in innovation," a press spokesperson of BMW told Xinhua. Numerous innovations for the Munich-based car manufacturer would be developed in China before migrating to other markets. With the exception of BMW's facilities in Germany, China was home to the largest research and development capabilities of the company.

Germany's largest carmaker Volkswagen saw an overall decline of 15.2 percent in vehicle sales in 2020. As China recovered more quickly from the pandemic than other countries, sales in Volkswagen's biggest market only decreased by 9.1 percent.

The Chinese market remained an "important pillar" for Volkswagen as the group would be "cautiously optimistic that the market potential will continue to further develop" in 2021, Leslie Bothge, Director CEO Communications at Volkswagen Group China, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Having achieved a market share of 19 percent, with four out of ten cars sold in China, Volkswagen is even planning to further expand its market share in the country in 2021 and is expecting "positive growth in deliveries above the overall market," added Bothge.