Text/Chen Haoxing

　　At the ongoing National Two Sessions, the development of the automobile industry has once again become a topic of concern. Many representatives and committee members have provided suggestions and suggestions around key words such as consumption promotion, dual carbon, intelligence, and exports.

　　At the same time, among the main expected goals for China's economic and social development this year, it is clearly emphasized that we must consolidate and expand the leading advantages in industries such as intelligent connected new energy vehicles and boost bulk consumption.

　　In order to further promote the consumption of new energy vehicles, after the Spring Festival this year, domestic automobile companies responded actively and used promotional methods such as price reductions and subsidies to help increase the market share of intelligent connected new energy vehicles.

Actual visit to 4S store!

What’s new in the automotive industry?

　　At the beginning of 2023, Tesla's domestic model price cut of up to 48,000 yuan sounded the clarion call for competition among car companies; in March of that year, 40 car brands followed up in the Hubei car market price war; in August, new car-making forces and traditional car companies also joined; In December, a new round of competition was launched through limited-time discounts and increased rights and interests.

　　In 2024, BYD will be the first to announce price cuts.

Subsequently, new energy brands such as Changan Qiyuan, Nezha Automobile, SAIC-GM-Wuling, etc. followed suit.

　　This time, the price reductions by car companies are mainly concentrated on new energy vehicles. The price reduction range ranges from 5% to 15%, and the price drops range from a few thousand yuan to tens of thousands of yuan.

Some netizens left a message saying that within two years, the price of BYD Qin dropped from 140,000 yuan to 79,800 yuan, a price difference of nearly 70,000 yuan.

In this regard, Guo Shijun went to a BYD 4S store in Beijing for consultation. The staff said that the "price difference of nearly 70,000 yuan" was based on comparing the price of the highest configuration at that time with the price of the lowest configuration now. The comparison was exaggerated. The actual situation was not in this way.

　　However, the staff member also admitted that compared with the end of 2023, many models in the store now do enjoy greater discounts.

Taking BYD Qin, which has attracted the most attention, as an example, there is indeed a price difference of about 20,000 yuan between the model before the facelift and the current model.

Consumers have mixed feelings

　　For consumers, new car price cuts are not entirely good news.

Although it will be cheaper and more affordable to buy a new car, the price reduction of new cars will lead to a drop in the price of second-hand cars, especially the owners of high-end new energy vehicles who will be hardest hit.

　　On the first day of resumption of work during the Spring Festival in the Year of the Dragon, Gaohe Automobile, which has always been regarded as the "luxury pure electric ceiling" by the industry, was exposed to the news of suspending work and production.

Previously, the price of Gaohe Automobile's products far exceeded the prices of most independent new energy vehicle brands. Among the three models it has launched, the cheapest starts at 339,000 yuan, and the top-end price of the most expensive model is as high as 800,000 yuan.

　　At present, the price of second-hand cars of Gaohe Automobile has dropped sharply.

Zhang Hao, the person in charge of a second-hand car shop in Beijing, revealed to China News Service Guoshi Express that he recently acquired a Gaohe HiPhiZ sedan that was launched in December 2023 with an original price of about 620,000 yuan. It can now be sold for 380,000 yuan. .

Prices have shrunk by nearly 40% in just 4 months.

　　Financial blogger Wen Yifei said that the car price competition in 2024 will not only have an impact on car manufacturers, but the price of vehicles in the hands of ordinary consumers will also drop.

As competition among car companies becomes increasingly fierce and prices continue to drop, the ability of various models to maintain their value is being challenged.

Many models that were once marketed as retaining their value are in trouble.

How long will this wave of car promotions last?

　　Many automobile experts believe that this market price competition between car companies should be regarded as a continuation of the "price-for-volume" trade in 2023.

If the price reduction promotions in 2023 can be compared to the first half of the "price competition", then in 2024, car companies have entered the second half of the price competition.

Interviewed experts pointed out that today's automobile companies are already in the exciting "finals" and the competition is extremely fierce.

　　Different from the past, many car companies shouted slogans such as "oil is stronger than electricity" and "electricity is lower than oil" in this price competition.

　　When BYD announced the price cut, it shouted the slogan "Electricity is lower than oil", pushing the competition among car companies to a climax; Beijing Hyundai used the slogan "Oil is better than electricity", and the starting price of the Elantra was set at 75,800 yuan; Nezha

　　Auto blogger "Lao Guo Mechanical Bureau" Guo Yining said in an interview with China News Service Guoshi Express that after experiencing the first half of market competition, traditional automobile companies realized that they could gain more attention and market share by creating gimmicks. .

For car companies, slogans such as "oil is stronger than electricity" and "electricity is lower than oil" are actually meant to attract consumers' attention.

　　Upstream battery raw material prices are also becoming cheaper.

　　Starting in 2023, the price of lithium carbonate, known as "white oil", has been falling from a high of 600,000 yuan per ton; in early January 2024, it once fell below 100,000 yuan per ton.

Data released by Shanghai Steel Federation shows that the current average price of battery-grade lithium carbonate is around 110,000 yuan.

　　In Wen Yifei's view, the reduction in battery costs will push the prices of mid-to-high-end electric vehicles to further decline, which means that there is still room for price reductions in new energy vehicles.

This trend may affect the price level of the entire automobile market and trigger stronger market changes.

　　Zhang Xiang, a researcher at the Automotive Industry Innovation Research Center of North China University of Technology, said in an interview with China News Service: First of all, China's automobile industry will still face problems such as overcapacity in 2024, leading to fierce competition in the industry, and price reduction has become one of the basic means for many companies. one.

Secondly, if China's automobile industry wants to transform from a big country to a powerful country, it means that some small companies must be eliminated and industry concentration must be increased.

In this process, price reduction competition has become one of the means to screen out advantageous enterprises and eliminate disadvantaged ones.

　　According to public information, there are currently about 100 automobile manufacturing companies in China.

　　Zhang Xiang predicts that by 2030 or 2035, the number of Chinese car companies may be reduced to 20-30.

As the scale of car companies expands and the competitive landscape stabilizes, this wave of market competition is expected to gradually weaken or even stop.

But currently, market competition among automobile companies may continue in 2024.