Control method and control apparatus for continuously variable transmission

The control method for the continuously variable transmission in the present invention detects a magnitude of an acceleration request, and when the acceleration request exceeds a preset threshold value, the control method controls a transmission ratio by switching from a first shift mode, in which a target transmission ratio is changed steplessly, to a second shift mode, which includes a stepwise change in the target transmission ratio. Then, when executing the second shift mode, a target engine rotation speed is set according to the magnitude of the acceleration request, and a step-down shift, in which the target transmission ratio is lowered stepwise according to the target engine rotation speed, is executed at an acceleration start time, and the target engine rotation speed after executing the step-down shift is retained for a predetermined period.