China Automobile Dealers Association: China's used car manager index is 42.5% in June 2022

On July 1, 2022, the China Automobile Dealers Association released the latest "China Used Car Manager Index" (UCMI). The results of this UCMI show that the used car manager index in June was 42.5%, which is below the boom-bust line, and the used car market is still in a sluggish range.

The survey shows that the total market demand decreased in June , with 37.3% of used car managers believing that the market demand had “ decreased ” , 41.3% believing that the market demand had “ remained basically the same ” , and 21.3% believing that the market demand had “ increased ” .

Due to the effect of the new car purchase tax policy, the vehicle replacement rate has increased. In addition, the further expansion of the restricted migration area has led to an increasing supply of used cars, which will have a certain impact on prices. In the short term, it will cause some consumers to wait and see the used car market, which will have a certain impact on demand.

Used car market demand in June

The survey shows that in June, the online customer base of used cars increased, while the offline customer base decreased. Among them, 30.9% of used car managers believed that the online customer base "increased", while 34.5% believed that the offline customer base "decreased".

Among the city samples in this survey, some cities saw an increase in online passenger flow in June compared to May due to the further relaxation of migration restrictions, but offline passenger flow decreased due to seasonal reasons.

Second-hand car traffic in June

The survey showed that the volume of used car transactions increased in June, with 24.0% believing that it increased, 58.0% believing that it remained the same, and 18.0% believing that it decreased. As the epidemic stabilized and the migration restriction policy was relaxed, the sales volume of used cars increased compared with May.

Used car sales in June

The survey showed that in June, inventory levels decreased and inventory turnover time remained basically the same. Among them, 28.7% of managers believed that inventory levels “decreased”, while 56.7% believed that inventory turnover time “remained basically the same”.

With the gradual relaxation of migration restriction policies, the inventory pressure on used car dealers has been relieved, and used car dealers have been able to recover some of their working capital.

Used car inventory in June

The survey shows that used car managers believe that the business conditions in June 2022 were not good, and the proportion of managers who believe that the business conditions were "bad" was 24.0%.

Second-hand car business status in June

Overall, although the used car market has recovered compared to May , and the restrictions on the relocation of used cars have been relaxed, the inventory pressure of used car dealers has been further relieved. However, the market improvement is not obvious. Affected by policies and car sources, transactions and prices have experienced short-term fluctuations, and the business performance of used car dealers in June was not good.

Among the used car managers surveyed, 30% said that capital circulation increased by 10~30% in June 2022 ; at the same time, 50% of managers expected that capital circulation in July 2022 would be basically the same as in June .

When talking about the expectations for July , the used car manager said: As the epidemic gradually stabilizes and the restrictions on the relocation of used cars are relaxed, used car dealers will have new opportunities, but in the short term, consumers will wait and see, and the impact on used car transactions and prices will continue. After entering July , it may be difficult to attract customers due to the uncertainty of climate and epidemic situation, so the business in July is not optimistic.

Used car managers are more cautious about their forecasts for the used car market in July 2022, with a confidence index of 44.1 % , which is below the boom-bust line.