Analysis of public opinion in the automotive industry in March 2023

According to statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, automobile production and sales in March reached 2.584 million and 2.451 million respectively, up 27.2% and 24% month-on-month, and up 15.3% and 9.7% year-on-year respectively. The automobile terminal market is still relatively weak, domestic effective demand has not been fully released, enterprises are under great operating pressure, and the task of stabilizing growth in the industry is very arduous.

This report summarizes the overall situation of the automobile market, key national policies and local dynamics from February to March 2023, and analyzes in detail popular events such as "'price reduction wave' in the automobile market in March", "NIO employee's circle of friends poster caption caused controversy", and "Tesla lost the 'refund one and compensate three' case".

Analysis of the overall situation of the automobile market

According to the China Passenger Car Association, passenger car sales in March reached 1.587 million units, up 0.3% year-on-year and 14.3% month-on-month. Retail sales in March achieved a positive growth of 14.3% month-on-month, the weakest month-on-month growth rate in March since the beginning of this century. The weak retail sales in March were affected by a combination of factors such as sluggish consumption and the intensified wait-and-see atmosphere caused by market price chaos.

Retail sales analysis table from February to March 2023

Policy and Regulatory Developments

【Central Policy】

• 03.29 Ministry of Industry and Information Technology - "Guidelines for the Construction of the National Automotive Chip Standard System (2023 Edition)" (Draft for Comments) Public Comments

By 2025, more than 30 key automotive chip standards will be formulated, covering general requirements such as environment and reliability, electromagnetic compatibility, functional safety and information security, key product and application technical requirements such as control chips, computing chips, storage chips, power chips and communication chips, as well as vehicle and key system matching test methods, so as to guide and standardize automotive chip products to achieve safe, reliable and efficient application.

• 03.07 National Development and Reform Commission - Supporting consumption in key areas of new energy vehicles

Li Chunlin, deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission, said at a press conference that the next step will be to promote the continued recovery and expansion of consumption, focusing on four aspects. First, multiple measures will be taken to promote steady growth in consumption. Second, residents' consumption capacity will be enhanced. Third, the consumption environment will be improved. Fourth, new growth points for consumption will be cultivated.

【Local policies】

• Boost consumption and boost the economy

03.15 Hefei: Hefei Municipal Bureau of Commerce issued the "Notice on Applying for Subsidy Policies to Promote New Energy Vehicle Consumption in 2023".

03.02 Guangdong: Notice of the People's Government of Guangdong Province on the promulgation of Several Policy Measures to Stimulate Enterprise Vitality and Promote High-quality Development in Guangdong Province.

• Add indicators

02.14 Guangzhou: In the first half of 2023, an additional 30,000 energy-saving vehicle incremental quotas will be allocated, and the eligibility conditions for non-local residents to apply for energy-saving vehicle incremental quotas will be temporarily relaxed.

02.08 Tianjin: 35,000 additional quotas for individual lottery for passenger cars will be allocated.

Industry hot events

The "price reduction wave" hit the auto market in March, and more than 40 auto brands participated in the "price war"

In early March, a group of posters announcing the launch of the strongest car purchase discount season in Hubei's history quickly went viral online, attracting strong attention from consumers across the country. As of March 24, many provinces and cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Henan, Shanxi, Jilin, Tianjin, Hebei, Chengdu, and Harbin have successively introduced preferential policies for car purchase subsidies to varying degrees. More than 40 auto brands including SAIC Volkswagen, FAW Volkswagen, BYD, FAW Toyota, GAC Toyota, SAIC GM Buick, SAIC Roewe, and SAIC MG have joined the price reduction promotion war.

Discounts by car companies (ranked in no particular order)