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A BYD car rolls off the production line in Hefei, Anhui province, on June 30, 2022. [Photo/VCG]

China witnesses a large scale auto price decrease with prices of over 86 models sharply decreasing, Sina Finance reported on Saturday, citing data from Southern Metropolis Daily.

After Dongfeng Motor cut prices by up to 90,000 yuan ($13,091) and BMW reduced prices by 100,000 yuan, Toyota even advertised “buy one get one free” to promote auto sales.

Apart from BYD and Changan Auto, Chery also joined to cut the prices of their automobiles on March 11.

The price cuts are expected to continue until after the May Day holiday and the performance of the second quarter is especially critical to auto manufactures, traditional car manufacturers told Jiemian News.

Industry insiders said that the main reason for the large-scale price reduction is to remove inventory and it may also be related to the implementation of State VI B emission standards.

Meanwhile, the auto price cuts will have a direct impact on the second-hand market, which will face considerable challenges this year, according to industrial insiders.

The 38th municipal science and technology innovation competition for teenagers kicked off on March 12 at Jiuzi Primary School. Chen Yi, a municipal superior inspector and chairman of the Association for Science and Technology, attended the opening ceremony.

The theme of this competition is “Innovation, Experience and Development “. More than 500 young athletes and technology instructors from more than 140 schools of Wuhu participated in the competition. A total of 311 entries were received in the competition, including 281 science and technology innovation achievements projects for teenagers (128 in the primary school group, 87 in the junior high school group, and 66 in the senior high school group), and 30 projects for science and technology counselors.

It is reported that the youth science and technology innovation competition for teenagers has developed into one of the city’s most influential youth science and technology activities. It is an important platform for the gathering and exchange of scientific and technological education achievements, and also a stage for the display and exchange of young technology enthusiasts and vast numbers of scientific and technological educators. This competition is jointly sponsored by the Municipal Association for Science and Technology, the Municipal Bureau of Education, the Youth League Municipal Committee, the Municipal Women’s Federation, and the Government of Jiujiang District. It aims to cultivate innovative talents as well as further to encourage teenagers to actively participate in scientific and technological innovation activities and strive to improve their awareness and ability of scientific and technological innovation.

Translated by Yuan Mengwen from Foreign Affairs Office of Wuhu Municipal People’s Government

Employees check cars rolling off a production line of an automaker in Yibin, Sichuan province. [Photo by Zhuang Geer/For China Daily]

China-made new energy vehicles are gaining in popularity globally, which automakers and experts said is a sign of the country’s leading position in the burgeoning sector.

Chinese and foreign carmakers exported 170,000 electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids from China in the first two months, up 62.8 percent year-on-year, said the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Chen Shihua, deputy secretary-general of the CAAM, said made-in-China vehicles are benefiting from an enhanced image thanks to their competitive edge in electrification and cutting-edge onboard functions including autonomous driving.

The CAAM’s statistics show that by the third quarter of 2022, there were 411 models available in China with driving-assist functions including automatic parking, and most of these were NEVs.

“Destinations of exports tell something. In the past we mainly exported vehicles to South America and Africa. Now, our NEVs are selling well in new destinations that we failed to get a foothold in previously, like Europe,” said Chen.

Both established giants and startups now consider Europe, where modern vehicles were invented, as a priority market in their global campaign.

New York-listed Chinese startup Nio entered Europe in 2021 with Norway as its first stop. In 2022, it expanded into four other European countries including Germany and Sweden.

Its electric sedan ET7 was named late last year as the best model in the “Medium and Upper Class” category in the 47-year old Golden Steering Wheel competition in Germany.

The award made Nio the first Chinese automaker to win the much-coveted accolade, which is usually won by German and Japanese brands.

SAIC Motor said its MG4 Electric is now available in around 800 dealerships in dozens of European countries, with monthly orders now exceeding 10,000 units.

The model was the result of its Chinese and British teams focusing on new car quality standards in different countries, said the carmaker.

Chinese bus maker Yutong sat atop the list of popular electric bus brands in Europe in 2022, beating local giants including Mercedes and Volvo.

A total of 479 Yutong e-buses were registered in Europe last year, up 58 percent year-on-year, seizing an 11.5 percent share of the growing market, according to consultancy Chatrou CME Solutions.

Yin Tongyue, chairman of Chery Automobile, said the popularity of China’s NEVs is backed by the country’s sound supply chain, from electric motors to batteries.

There were 723,000 companies in China’s NEV sector by the end of February, of which 80 percent were established within the past five years, according to Chinese corporate information provider Tianyancha.

South Korea’s SNE Research said that six out of the world’s top 10 makers of power batteries used in NEVs in 2022 were Chinese, with CATL sitting atop the list for six years in a row.

The availability of experienced workers in the NEV sector is another factor in China’s increasingly competitive edge.

Grace Tao, vice-president of Tesla, said “99.9 percent” of its employees in China are local Chinese. Tesla’s plant in Shanghai is one of its global export hubs.

On March 10th, 2023 Anhui Automobiles and Auto Parts Output and Demand Matchmaking Meeting was held in Wanzhi District, Wuhu City. Ke Wenbin, deputy director-general of Anhui Provincial Economy and Information Technology Department, and Cai Yi, vice mayor of Wuhu, attended the meeting and delivered remarks.

With the theme of “Linking New Industrial Ecology and Realizing New Automobile Development”, the matchmaking meeting invited 200-plus key enterprises of complete vehicles and auto parts, financial enterprises and colleges and universities. Product supply and demand contracts of 14.8 billion yuan, and major investment projects of 11.4 billion yuan were signed at the meeting. In addition, some key automobile manufacturing enterprises signed strategic cooperation agreements with banks and financial institutions, and targeted personnel training agreements with universities. During the meeting, Wanzhi District promotes the development of the auto parts industry. Representatives from eight enterprises introduce the growth of enterprises and their new products.

In recent years, Anhui has vigorously implemented the development strategy of building a strong manufacturing province, and aimed to develop the automobiles and auto parts industry into a trillion industry. At present, Wuhu automobiles and auto parts industry has attracted 371 enterprises above the designated size, planning the whole industrial chain. In 2022, the output value of automobiles and auto parts industry in the city exceeded 200 billion yuan, up 30.8% year-on-year, and the total sales volume of automobile manufacturing industry ranked first in the province.

Translated by Wang Mengxiao from Foreign Affairs Office of Wuhu Municipal People’s Government

A high-speed train depot on the railway between Shanghai and Nanjing. [Photo by Bruce Connolly/chinadaily.com.cn]

The goal for China’s railway system in the next five years and beyond is for it to promote high-quality development and take the lead in achieving modernization to support the government’s stated goal of turning the country into a modern socialist country in all respects, a top railway official said.

With the goal of laying 165,000 kilometers of track by the end of 2025, 50,000 km of which will be high-speed, the key is to develop a modernized railway system, concentrating on infrastructure, transportation services, innovation, safety, effective operation, management and governance, said Liu Zhenfang, president of China State Railway Group, the national railway operator.

By that point, the railway sector will have fulfilled the targets set in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) for development, said Liu, who is also a deputy to the 14th National People’s Congress.

“To build a modern railway transportation service, we will speed up efforts to create a smart, efficient service system and use the high-speed railway network to assist in the development of a modern logistics system,” Liu said.

By the end of 2025, 99.5 percent of cities with more than 200,000 residents will have access to the general railway network, and 98 percent of cities with more than 500,000 residents will have access to the high-speed railway network.

To create a modern technological innovation system, the sector will follow major national strategies promoting the development of its industrial system and expanding the advantages of China’s railway sector around the world, he added.

Last month, a railway science and technology innovation alliance was set up in Beijing. The group will gather resources to conduct research on key technology, promote the industrial application of railway innovations and enhance technological communication and training.

The alliance, led by China State Railway Group, consists of key companies, universities and research institutes, with the goal of deeply integrating the academic, research and industrial sectors.

Through its research, the alliance hopes to make breakthroughs in key technologies. It will allocate resources to contribute to national strategic plans, and will study global technological problems, take up key tasks and promote technological and innovation capacity.

China’s railway network has undergone rapid development over the past decade and has made great accomplishments, Liu said, adding that it ranks among the best in the world, particularly for high-speed lines, high-altitude lines, lines in extremely cold climates and heavy-load lines.

The cross-border freight train linking China and Europe connects 108 Chinese cities and 208 cities in 25 European countries. Since its opening in 2011, the service has run 65,000 China-Europe services and transported 6.04 million containers.

Over the course of the last 10 years, 4.3 trillion yuan ($617 billion) has been invested in building railways in remote and less-developed areas, accounting for 78 percent of the overall investment in railway construction, and bringing rail services to more than 130 counties.

“These achievements have not come easily. They are the result of the continual efforts of 2 million railway workers,” Liu said.

Gu Xueming, a member of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), is interviewed ahead of the opening of the first session of the 14th CPPCC National Committee at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, March 4, 2023. [Photo/Xinhua]

The Belt and Road Initiative has created new growth points for global economic development and provided fresh opportunities for international cooperation, said Gu Xueming, a member of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, on Saturday.

Speaking ahead of the opening of the first session of the 14th CPPCC National Committee in Beijing, Gu, also President of the Beijing-based Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, said that the BRI has maintained strong momentum over the past decade.

The trade expert said that China has signed over 200 cooperation agreements with 151 countries and 32 international organizations, doubling its goods trade with countries involved in the initiative and is increasing its direct investment in their markets by 80 percent.

Citing an example of a Chinese company investing in and building a pharmaceutical factory in Mali, he said that with the production expansion of this plant, Mali has ended its dependence on imported drugs and significantly lowered market prices for products of this kind, while driving the growth of related industries.

The factory currently has a local employment rate of over 90 percent and exports drugs to eight neighboring countries, greatly alleviating the problem of the medicine shortage in West Africa.

China’s trade in goods with the BRI-related economies doubled from $1.04 trillion (7.18 trillion yuan) in 2013 to $2.07 trillion in 2022, with an average annual growth rate of 8 percent, according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce earlier this week.

Two-way investments between China and countries and regions participating in the BRI exceeded $270 billion during the period, said the ministry.

Gu stressed that opening-up is China’s basic national policy, and that the country has continuously made breakthroughs in institutional innovation through the development of pilot free trade zones.

A few days ago, the reporter learned from Anhui Port Group Wuhu Co., Ltd. that in 2022, Wuhu Port completed the port throughput of 22,615,800 tons, the container volume of 1.250,200 TEU and the vehicle transportation volume of 276,200 units，which hit a record high. Wuhu is more prominent as a shipping hub connecting the central, western regions and the Yangtze River Delta.

In the New Year, Wuhu Port will anchor the mission objectives and focus on the work priorities with the drive of “the beginning is the decisive battle” and the effort of “the start is the sprint”. In January this year, Yuxikou Branch achieved a good performance of over 700,000 tons of coal handling capacity, with a year-on-year increase of 11%; The container throughput of Wuhu Port Company achieved 100.44% of the monthly plan, with a year-on-year growth of 5.07%; The volume of packing and unpacking increased by 96.16% year on year.

Translated by Yuan Mengwen from Foreign Affairs Office of Wuhu Municipal People’s Government

Recently, the shortlist for cities and districts with prominent achievements in developing digital economy in Anhui Province in 2022 was unveiled. A total of six areas are on the shortlist, and two of them are in Wuhu, including Jinghu District and Wuhu City.

It is learned that the shortlist is mainly based on the evaluation results of the effectiveness of building information infrastructure, promoting digital industrialization and digitalization of traditional industries, accelerating the innovation and development of industrial Internet, improving the capacity building of network and data security and creating an environment for the development of digital economy in the declared cities and regions in the previous year.

In recent years, Wuhu has implemented the “No.1 Project” of digital economy in depth, such as facilitating digital industrialization and digitalization of traditional industries, promoting the deep integration of digital economy and real economy, and empowering the digital transformation of all walks of life, which has greatly boosted the high-quality economic development of the city. As the downtown area of Wuhu and the core area of the service industry, Jinghu District has always adhered to digital development, promoted the transformation and upgrading of modern service industry, actively cultivated new development momentum, enriched the industrial carrier platform, and fully empowered regional economic development. All these efforts have seen positive results.

Translated by Wang Mengxiao from Foreign Affairs Office of Wuhu Municipal People’s Government

BEIJING, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) — An article by Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on major issues pertaining to the country’s current economic work, was published Thursday.

The article by Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, was published in this year’s fourth issue of the Qiushi Journal, a flagship magazine of the CPC Central Committee.

The article says that the economic work in 2023 is complicated, and it is necessary to bear in mind the overall strategic picture, focus on the major problems and start with improving public expectations and boosting confidence in development.

It stresses efforts to expand domestic demand by prioritizing the recovery and expansion of consumption, and effectively driving investment of the whole society through government investment and policy incentives.

Efforts should also be made to give full play to the supporting role of exports in the economy and accelerate the transformation of China into a trader of quality, according to the article.

In terms of modernizing the country’s industrial system, the article points out that China has the most complete industrial system and a domestic market with the greatest potential in the world. It urges efforts to improve the country’s resilience and the security of the industrial and supply chains, while paying close attention to addressing weaknesses and enhancing strengths.

Calling for ensuring smooth circulation in the economy, the article says that China’s economy must ensure national security, meeting people’s basic living needs, as well as the normal operation of infrastructure and basic industries.

China should also accelerate and upgrade its industrial system by planning ahead in key areas and comprehensively modernizing its industrial system, so as to consolidate its leading position in traditional advantageous industries and create new competitiveness, according to the article.

The article stresses the importance of continuing reforms to develop the socialist market economy, and solidly implementing the principle of unswervingly consolidating and developing the public sector while encouraging, supporting and guiding the development of the non-public sector.

It is imperative to deepen the reform of state-owned capital and state-owned enterprises (SOEs), while enhancing the core competitiveness of the SOEs, the article says.

It also calls for efforts to improve the development environment for private firms and promote the development and expansion of the private sector.

Noting that international competition for attracting investment is becoming more intense, the article urges more efforts to attract and utilize foreign investment.

Efforts should be made to expand market access, comprehensively improve the business environment, and provide targeted services to foreign-funded enterprises, it says.

The article calls for efforts to effectively forestall and defuse major economic and financial risks, including the systemic risks arising from the property sector, financial risks and local government debt risks.

There is still a lot of important work to be done in 2023, says the article, citing tasks such as advancing rural revitalization on all fronts and planning a new round of reform across the board.

While expanding domestic demand has been touted as an important means of promoting economic growth in China, experts noted that a recently released guideline has stressed the importance of simultaneously deepening supply-side reform.

“In order to formulate a strong, dynamic domestic market, the Chinese economy is in pursuit of a more dynamic equilibrium in which demand impacts supply and supply generates greater demand,” said Gao Ruidong, chief macroeconomist at Everbright Securities.

With the Chinese economy beginning to rebound from the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic, the pent-up potential of consumption is being unleashed.

Zhang Junwei, a research fellow at the department of macroeconomic research at the Development Research Center of the State Council, said the timely optimization of China’s epidemic control measures has helped reduce market uncertainty over the past two months and is conducive to expanding domestic demand and recovery.

“The importance of expanding domestic demand differs depending on the stages of China’s economic growth. Currently, it is the most direct solution for shoring up inadequate demand in China,” he said. “Of all the efforts underlined by the new guideline, the key is promoting the enthusiasm of both the government and the market, particularly when global growth prospects are gloomy and the world is faced with a sluggish economic recovery.”

Since the guideline’s release in December, businesses have seen evidence of China’s economic rebound and have outlined their production goals for this year in accordance with the policies in the

According to the guideline, incentivizing the new energy sector is key to boosting supply-side upgrades and developing new strategically emerging industries. For this reason, He Zhiqi, senior vice-president of NEV manufacturer BYD in Hefei, Anhui province, said that he has strong confidence that demand in the NEV market will continue to grow this year.

“We have seen how red-hot the market has been since late last year. In December, our sales of new energy vehicles came in at approximately 235,200 units, a year-on-year increase of more than 150 percent,” he said. “Recently, the central government has stated that efforts will be made to prioritize the recovery and expansion of domestic demand, and NEVs have played an integral role in this process. We are confident that market demand for NEVs this year will continue to grow steadily, and we will make greater efforts to improve our NEV technologies.”