BEIJING - In two
indications of the continuing rapid evolution of
China's booming auto industry, it was announced
that in 2005, for the first time, China exported
more autos than it imported. Also, the country's
hybrid car industry has made great progress, with
four Chinese auto makers expected to put hybrids
on sale by the end of this year.
Exports exceeded imports in
2005 In 2005 China exported 172,639 autos,
11,031 more than it imported, according to the
latest figures from the Ministry of
Commerce. This is the first
time the country has exported more cars than it
imported in a year. The value of these exported
autos was US$1.58 billion, jumping 158.4% year on
year. In terms of number of units, the increase
was 120.5%.
Of the total, China exported
31,125 sedans worth $271 million, jumps of 233.4%
and 222.2% year on year respectively, and 1,844
off-road vehicles, 10,442 microbuses, 6,433 large
and medium-sized buses, 96,549 trucks and some
special-use vehicles.
Meanwhile, China
imported 161,608 autos worth $5.2 billion, down 8%
and 4.5% year on year. Of the total, China
imported 76,542 sedans worth $2.6 billion, down
34.1% and 20.7%, 65,966 off-road vehicles worth
$1.8 billion, up 86.8% and 66.3%, and 12,487
microbuses worth $266 million, up 17% and 14.9%.
China's import of large and medium-sized buses,
trucks and special-use vehicles dropped in 2005.
Since the average unit price of autos
exported by China is much lower than that of autos
imported by China, the total dollar value of auto
exports was less than one-third of the import
value, despite the fact that exports exceeded
imports in terms of numbers.
Hybrids to
hit market Environmentally friendly hybrid
cars are expected to be released on to the Chinese
market at the end of this year after four years of
development. The cars, which run on a mixture of
electricity and fuel, are made by several Chinese
auto firms, including the Dongfeng Motor Corp
(DFM), Chang'an Motor Corp, Chery Auto Co and the
China FAW Group Corp.
Wan Gang, head of a
national team of experts on the hybrid-automobile
program, says scaled production of the vehicles
has been listed as a key task in China's 11th
Five-Year Program that begins this year, so that
more Chinese families can own the low-emission
cars by 2010.
The development of hybrid
vehicles was listed as a key project in China's
"863 program" - a national high-tech plan
initiated in March 1986 to enhance the country's
overall power - and as part of the 10th Five-Year
Plan adopted in 2001.
In recent years,
Chinese experts have made great progress on the
design and development of a series of hybrid
buses, including the fuel-cell bus, the
hybrid-electric bus and a bus run purely on
electricity. Twenty hybrid-electric buses,
designed and made by DFM, are in service in Wuhan,
the capital of central China's Hubei province. Another
flagship hybrid bus also drove off the China FAW
Group Corp production line recently.
Wan
noted that the two types of hybrid buses have both
passed official tests, signifying the start of the
mass production of environment-friendly buses in
China. Statistics released by the FAW said hybrid
buses can save 30% over conventional buses with
respect to oil use, and reduce harmful exhaust by
30%. Wan says an increasing number of Chinese
automobile manufacturers have selected hybrid
vehicles as targets for future development. "These
firms have formed China's first hybrid-automobile
production base," Wan acknowledged.
A
senior official with the Ministry of Science and
Technology said China has made remarkable progress
in the development of hybrid vehicles, and that
in-house production would undoubtedly increase its
competitiveness in the global market. Despite the
progress in the industry, experts maintain that
its level of technology is still far behind more
advanced international standards. Experts urged
the Chinese government to issue more favorable
measures in support of the production of hybrid
cars in China.
