The Globe and Mail reports in its Monday edition that Chinese demand for foreign luxury cars is waning as customers opt for more affordable Chinese brand models, often sold at big discounts. An Associated Press dispatch to The Globe says that is bad news for European carmakers such as Porsche, Aston Martin, Mercedes-Benz and BMW which have long dominated the upper reaches of the world's largest auto market. A prolonged property downturn in China has left many consumers with little appetite for big purchases. Meanwhile, the well-to-do are becoming increasingly shy about publicly displaying their wealth, said Paul Gong automotive research head at UBS. Many car buyers have been swayed by a 20,000-yuan ($3,902) trade-in subsidy offered by the Chinese government for purchasing electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. People tended to purchase cheaper, entry-level cars where the discount will count more and those cars are mostly Chinese made, Mr. Gong said. Slowing economic growth is one key driver behind weaker demand for premium cars. The market share of premium car sales in China, usually priced above 300,000 yuan, more than doubled between 2017 and 2023 to about 15 per cent of total sales. That trend is now reversing.