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Originally Posted by niky
Yes, that's the one advantage China-only cars have over US-only cars... more applicable to developing markets that share Chinese tastes. Eventually, those developing markets will sign on to EURO emissions and NCAP requirements, though... but China has that covered... CNCAP is finally up to the same specs as Euro NCAP.
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It's not a matter of sharing tastes, it's a matter of low budget. Well, maybe if it has a Western badge instead of some obscure Chinese brand it also seems more attractive. When it comes to emissions, even though it's still usually enforced at a less strict stage compared to Europe, it seems to be enforced at a tougher pace than safety standards.
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The last of the super JDM secondhands from the 90's are finally clearing out. But with or without them, typically those wanting manuals are looking at cheaper secondhand cars, anyway.
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Nowadays due to the lack of manuals among the JDM second-hand arrivals in Paraguay, even those who in the past would prefer a manual basically have not too much choice by now.
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Chinese companies are now heavily investing in new AT technologies. AMTs are already popular, as they are in India, and CVTs are gaining ground. Several manufacturers have deals with companies like JATCO, others are building their own.
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I don't remember having ever seen a Chinese car fitted with AMT, even though some newer SUVs from JAC and Lifan now feature AT as an option.
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As for India... AMTs seem wildly popular there compared to anywhere... manual tranny ease of maintenance, automatic tranny convenience... some compromises, but easy to live with once you get used to the quirks. I hate the loathsome thing compared to a full manual, but if I had no choice, and if I were the one paying the fuel and maintenance bills, why not?
Last AMT I drove, the replacement clutch cost was less than my personal MT.
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Lower cost of maintenance compared to a conventional automatic has attracted mostly truck and bus fleets here, but in cars the AMT is still pointed out to be somewhat "inferior" to a conventional automatic, and most people dislike its rough behavior coming to a stop. Well, at least it applies to single-clutch ones (hadn't tried a dual-clutch yet).
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If they come with a starter clutch, I'm fine with sequential paddles. 
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Are you serious? Starter clutch like earlier generations of Scania's Opticruise?