Auto & Transportation

As a landmark product of the second industrial revolution, the invention and application of internal combustion engines opened the prelude to modern industry, greatly promoting the development of human civilization, and the automobile manufacturing industry represented by fuel vehicles is also known as the crown of modern industry.

When it comes to the development of China's automobile industry, the most accurate footnote should be "from pioneering to the sea of stars.". The arduous struggle of several generations of automobile workers has forged the great backbone of the national automobile industry. From technological innovation to brand advancement, from product going overseas to green land investment, Chinese cars with new energy as the accelerator are now bringing oriental wisdom into the domestic and overseas markets, demonstrating the courage and responsibility of Chinese path to modernization to the world.

"Going out", to show the world the fruitful results of Chinese path to modernization

In 2020, 1 million vehicles; In 2021, 201 million vehicles; In 2022, 3.11 million vehicles. The export data of automobile international trade, which has hit a new high for three years in a row, has shocked domestic and foreign counterparts. The great development of the automobile industry is one of the important practices of Chinese path to modernization. In the international environment of the impact of the epidemic and chip shortage, the stabilization and improvement of automobile "going global" is an important manifestation of the resilience of China's manufacturing industry and foreign trade. According to Xu Haidong, Deputy Chief Engineer of the China Automobile Industry Association, the outbreak of the international trade market marks the entry of a new stage in China's automobile industry.

Xu Haidong pointed out that the main reasons for the current improvement in China's automobile exports are as follows: First, the overall product competitiveness of China's automobile design capabilities has been greatly improved; Second, new technologies such as new energy and intelligent networking have provided acceleration for automobile exports; Third, Chinese automotive companies have further increased their emphasis on overseas markets; Fourth, Chinese automobile companies have conducted diversified exploration on investment models in the international trade market. Under the superposition of various factors, it is inevitable that the international trade market will usher in an explosive period of thick accumulation and thin development.

As a pioneer in automobile shipping, Zhang Guibing, Deputy General Manager of Chery Automobile Co., Ltd. and General Manager of International Company, said in an interview with reporters, "Starting from exporting 10 vehicles in 2001, Chery has focused on the international trade market for 20 years, and has accumulated a lot of experience during this period. Currently, it has formed relatively complete systematic and targeted measures and experience. Currently, Chery has fully equipped itself to compete in the international market."

The beautiful vision of "filling the world with Geely" promised by Geely Automobile from the beginning of its birth. Therefore, the offshore business has always been an important strategic deployment of Geely. "In 2003, Geely Automobile Group first went overseas, achieving a 'zero breakthrough' in vehicle exports. In 2008, Geely passed the export threshold of 10000 units. In 2022, Geely Automobile Group exported 198000 units, a year-on-year increase of 72.4%, in six major regions around the world (Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific, Africa, Latin America, and Europe)." "Deepening the layout, especially in the European regional market, has made important breakthroughs in business development. Currently, Geely International has established 380 sales and service outlets in 52 overseas countries." Chi Feng, deputy general manager of Zhejiang Geely Automobile International Trade Co., Ltd., said.

Apart from passenger cars, commercial vehicles have also performed brilliantly. "Our performance in the Thai market in 2022 can be described as a 'Himalayan Mountains' rising from the ground, leaping from zero sales to 1850. This Bangkok bus project is assembled with all CKD parts, which is also the largest single market order in the history of Golden Travel Bus." An Min, General Manager of Golden Travel Bus Overseas Sales Company, said in a media interview. In addition, Jinlv Bus has also maintained a sustained growth in exports to the Nordic market, doubling from when it first entered the market in 2020.

"Integrate into" and let oriental wisdom benefit all mankind

The automotive industry is recognized as a pillar industry in the world. Most countries attach high importance to their own automotive industry, and traditional automotive giants such as Europe, the United States, Japan, and South Korea have an early start in overseas markets and rich experience in globalization. It is an inevitable process for China's automotive industry to gain a foothold in the international market, address territorial cultural differences, and achieve the integration and development of products and culture.

Xu Haidong pointed out that in the process of "going global" for Chinese automobiles through trade, it is necessary to pay attention to the construction of supporting service systems such as maintenance systems and spare parts supply systems. After successfully "going global", it is necessary to export advanced management models and production systems through investment and factory construction, and finally create a brand effect by actively fulfilling overseas social responsibilities and other means, so that Oriental wisdom can benefit the local people. Only in this way can we achieve truly integrated development.

Zhang Guibing, who has nearly 20 years of overseas market experience, told reporters that it is necessary to do long-term and healthy business to develop international trade markets. Automobiles are consumer resistant products and involve major issues such as personal safety. Therefore, it is necessary to have a very complete after-sales service system such as maintenance. The automobile manufacturing industry has a long industrial chain, and an automobile brand must have a reasonable profit margin to achieve sound development and improve various after-sales systems. Currently, an important criterion for Chery Automobile to expand its overseas market is to see whether it can go on for a long time.

Chi Feng, who has been working on the front line of the international market for many years, believes that integrating into the overseas market requires an international perspective and embedding international elements in the top-level design. From the perspective of Geely's experience in moving overseas, the most important aspect of "integrating" is to solve localization issues. Geely's "integrating" in the overseas market mainly focuses on product localization, supply chain localization, talent localization, and marketing localization, and has achieved good market results.

Due to the differences in product attributes, commercial vehicles pay more attention to the "integration" of the applicability of the product itself. An Min shared such a detail that in the past, when domestic bus companies exported to Nordic countries, they basically completed vehicle body manufacturing using high-strength steel combined with cathodic electrophoretic technology in accordance with the convention. After investigation, it was found that snow melting agents were used frequently in the four Nordic countries, resulting in severe corrosion of high-strength steel materials. In view of this, since 2022, all Jinlv bus products that have established themselves in the four Nordic countries have adopted stainless steel as the body material.