On June 22, the meeting proposed to increase support for automobile consumption, and launched a number of major benefits to further unleash the potential of automobile consumption, including the complete removal of restrictions on the entry of vehicles that meet the National V emission standards from August 1. Starting from the 1st, when auto sales enterprises apply for transfer registration, they will implement separate endorsement management and issue temporary license plates. On July 7, 17 departments including the Ministry of Commerce issued the "Notice on Several Measures for Activating Automobile Circulation and Expanding Automobile Consumption", and proposed specific measures to speed up the activation of the used car market.
Following the tax, the problems of restricted relocation of used cars and temporary license plates have also been solved. So far, the "three mountains" that have plagued the second-hand car industry for many years have been completely overthrown, and the second-hand car favorable policy can be said to be able to come out. Against this background, this newspaper planned a series of interviews on "When the used car 'Three Mountains' were toppled", inviting used car practitioners to talk about their inner ups and downs and future plans after the used car "Three Mountains" were torn down.
"At present, my country's second-hand car industry is in the early stage of rapid development, and the blockage in the circulation link has not been opened, so the circulation of second-hand cars and the sales of new cars are restricted, which affects the 'metabolism' of the entire automobile market." Recently, the China Automobile Dealers Association In an exclusive interview with a reporter from China Auto News, Deputy Secretary-General Luo Lei said, "In the stage of the stock market, only by improving the relevant policies of the used car industry, establishing a long-term mechanism, and laying the foundation for the sustainable development of the auto market, the entire life cycle of the car can be achieved. The value chain can be opened up.”
Luo Lei, who has been in the used car industry for nearly 20 years, is very pleased with the recent favorable policies for used cars. In addition to being gratified, he is also more busy, not only busy preparing for the 8th used car conference to be held by the China Automobile Dealers Association in August, but also answering the hotline - helping used car companies to interpret the new policies and make suggestions.
Restricted relocation hinders national circulation of used cars
Luo Lei recalled that when he first came into contact with second-hand cars in 2003, he became attached to the industry and worked for 20 years. At the beginning of the business, the second-hand car market was in a state of savage growth. Car dealers basically sold cars in one shot, relying on opaque information to earn the price difference, and services such as testing, extended warranty, and after-sales were basically blank. Luo Lei said frankly that the second-hand car market at that time was "deep in water". If there were no friends who knew cars to help, no one would dare to buy them. In the past 20 years, although the characteristics of "small, scattered and weak" main players in the second-hand car market have not changed much, the car dealers' awareness of integrity has been continuously improved, and the supporting systems such as third-party testing, financial loans, and after-sales services have been gradually improved. The perception of used cars and the used car market is also gradually turning around.
Referring to the recent proposal at the regular meeting of the National Assembly, "Starting from August 1, the restrictions on the entry of small non-operating second-hand vehicles with the National V emission standard will be completely abolished; from October 1, the transfer registration will be separately endorsed and a temporary license plate will be issued", Luo said. Lei said bluntly: "It's really not easy to get to this point."
As a witness, Luo Lei felt a lot when he reviewed the process of the used car industry overthrowing the "three mountains". Near the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the air quality in Beijing was worrying and there were many severe pollution weather, so Beijing took the lead in implementing the National IV emission standard, which was 3 years earlier than the whole country. The car must meet the National IV emission standard. In 2009, the Beijing area issued a document to accelerate the elimination of yellow-label vehicles, and provided a reward of up to 25,000 yuan for scrapped and transferred vehicles. This policy has continued since then. Between 2009 and 2010, a large number of cars in Beijing were transferred and registered to Hebei and Shandong. Seeing the influx of second-hand cars with low emission standards, in 2011, Hebei Province took advantage of the implementation of the National IV emission standards, and also began to restrict the inflow of second-hand cars below the National IV emission standards. Moreover, the local regulations in Hebei are even worse than those in Beijing, and the transfer registration of used cars between cities in Hebei Province is also subject to emission restrictions. As a result, the practice of using emission standards as a condition for restricting the circulation of used cars spread across the country, reaching a peak in 2014. According to a survey by the China Automobile Dealers Association, in 2014, 90% of the more than 300 cities in the country implemented restrictions on relocation, and the national circulation of used cars was severely hindered. In view of this, the China Automobile Dealers Association submitted a document to the former Ministry of Environmental Protection, calling for the cancellation of the relocation restriction. Relocation restrictions have also aroused industry concerns.
Removing the three major obstacles in a few steps
In mid-January 2009, the State Council promulgated the "Automobile Industry Adjustment and Revitalization Plan", which proposed to establish national standards for used car appraisal and evaluation and a temporary property rights registration system, adjust the VAT collection method for used car transactions, strengthen the supervision of the used car market, and strictly operate the main market. Access, standardize used car trading behavior, and maintain market order. The "Planning" points out the direction for the healthy development of the used car industry, but due to various reasons, the adjustment of temporary property rights registration and VAT collection methods is relatively slow.
In 2009, the China Automobile Dealers Association took the lead in conducting a nationwide survey on the VAT collection method for used cars and forming a report. Since then, it has continuously submitted reports and suggestions to the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation, striving to solve industry tax problems and create a fair market. surroundings. After the association submitted relevant reports to the State Council through the Ministry of Commerce, in 2016 the State Council issued several opinions on promoting the convenient transaction of second-hand cars, which firstly put forward rectification requirements for the increasingly serious problem of restricted relocation of second-hand cars. Among them, it is clear that it complies with the national emission and safety standards for motor vehicles in use. Second-hand vehicles that are within the validity period of environmental protection periodic inspections and annual inspections can go through the move-in procedures. (Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta) with special requirements. Places that have implemented policies restricting the influx of used cars will be lifted by the end of May 2016. In addition, the opinions also pointed out that it is necessary to further improve the management of used car transaction registration and optimize the tax policy for used car transactions.
Luo Lei said that the introduction of this document opened the prelude to the removal of the "three mountains" in the used car industry. After years of hard work, the restrictions on the relocation of used cars are the first to break the ice. Except for the key air pollution prevention and control areas, the restrictions on relocation in other parts of the country have been basically abolished. This year, the proposal to completely abolish the restrictions on the relocation of small non-operating used cars under the National V emission standards will further Open up the national circulation of second-hand cars.
In the 2020 State Council Executive Work Conference, it was proposed that the 0.5% VAT reduction for used car dealerships is the best solution to the tax problem within the existing framework, which will help reduce the tax pressure on enterprises and move towards fair taxation. an important step. However, in the subsequent operation process, the utilization rate of industry tax stamps was low. The reason is that the second-hand car product attributes are not determined, and the second-hand car transaction is still a property right transaction, so it is more suitable for the brokerage model. This time, the regular meeting of the National Assembly proposed that the vehicle transfer registration should be endorsed separately and issued with a temporary license plate. In fact, after the car dealers purchase, they will no longer be registered as assets, but should be endorsed as commodities, restoring the commodity attributes of second-hand cars. For the operator, it was originally necessary to apply for a driving license and a license plate after receiving the car, and each additional transfer will increase the cost. In the future, the used car will be endorsed by the product, and the remaining cost can be returned to the consumer.
In Luo Lei's view, the current blockages, pain points and difficulties that hinder the national circulation of used cars and affect the healthy development of the industry have all proposed solutions in terms of policies, and then specific implementation rules need to be implemented. For example, in the process of separately signing and issuing license plates, it is necessary to clarify which business entities are suitable for this policy, and under what conditions they can be issued. In addition, in terms of taxation, how the car dealers obtain the car receipt invoice, whether the invoice amount is consistent with the actual transaction price, etc., need to come up with methods to regulate the specific operation.
The market will break out and meet the challenges of transformation
In June, news of second-hand car dealers clearing their inventory at a loss and seeking to change careers rushed to the hot search, showing the difficulty of practitioners. On the one hand, due to the impact of the epidemic, the auto market in some areas has been suspended in accordance with the requirements of prevention and control. On the other hand, the market consumption power is insufficient, and the expected automobile consumption has weakened. In the past six months, the used car industry has fallen into a rare difficult period in recent years.
Luo Lei said that at present, used car dealers with less than 3 people account for more than 50%, so they are greatly affected by the market environment and their ability to resist risks is relatively weak. When the market environment changes and demand weakens, car dealers should not sit still and focus on their own transformation and upgrading. In any industry, there are survival of the fittest, and only those companies that can keep up with the pace of the market can enjoy industry dividends.
Luo Lei pointed out that the relevant practitioners must first adapt to the market situation and policy environment. For example, 4S stores should fully enter the used car business, understand the policies, cultivate a backbone team and establish a sound used car business management system; small car dealers are faced with key choices. The brokerage method can solve the problem of food and clothing, but there are financial loopholes in the method of transferring the car to the individual's name. To obtain more profits and expand a large-scale business, it is necessary to operate as an enterprise, standardize the finance, open a public account, and conduct human resources management. From brokerage The model is transformed into a distribution model; the trading market is also facing severe challenges. Consumers have higher and higher requirements for services. After the product attributes are determined, the trading market will be challenged to obtain income by invoicing. If you want to survive, you must Open source, continue to develop services, and use a variety of services to support the survival and development of small car dealers.
In the short term, driven by policies, the second half of this year will see a marked improvement in the used car market. The national transaction volume has begun to pick up in June. It is expected that it will turn from negative to positive in July and return to normal levels in the fourth quarter. In the long run, the second-hand car market adjustment mechanism will be gradually established, relying on the market competition mechanism for development. Authorized dealers will be a fast-growing group, forming a pattern in which chain and branded large-scale enterprises are the mainstream, and B2B enterprises will gain more room for development. In terms of industry financing, the current capital side is cautious about the used car industry, and it is difficult to reproduce the investment boom from 2015 to 2018. However, it is not ruled out that some investors tend to invest in companies that integrate online and offline, or take new models. Businesses are supported.
Regarding the question of whether the substantial preferential policies for the new car market given by the state and local governments will divert the consumption of second-hand cars, Luo Lei believes that the second-hand car market will find a balance with the new car market through its own adjustment. At present, about half of the sales of new cars in my country are realized through replacement. Only old cars can be replaced with new cars. This provides the market with a sufficient source of second-hand cars at reasonable prices and increases the choice of consumers. In contrast, when my country's new car sales peaked in 2017, the used car market increased by as much as 20%, which is enough to show that the new and used car markets complement each other, so the growth of new car sales is not bad for the used car market.
