Related News
Home » Metro » Public Services
Bidders drive up car plate prices
By Jin Jing |
April 19, 2009, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THE price of Shanghai car plates rose unexpectedly yesterday despite an increase in the plate quota and fewer bidders.
It was the first auction to be held after the future of the plate auction system was assured until 2012.
The Shanghai government auctioned 6,500 car plates yesterday, 500 more than March, and the average price for a plate rose from 27,552 yuan (US$4,030) to 28,724 yuan. The minimum price also rose, increasing 1,700 yuan to 28,300 yuan during the same period. About 17,654 people bid for the plates, 921 less than last month.
Auto dealers believed the rebound in price was because of a government assurance that the auction system would not be abolished.
It's believed that many car owners stayed away from the auctions in February and March after a government official said the system would be dropped when the city's public transport had improved sufficiently.
But Zhu Junyi, from the auto industry research office under the Shanghai Economic Committee's Information Center, said last week the auction was unlikely to be phased out until 2012 due to insufficient public transport and the dominance of cars.
"Car owners had adopted a wait-and-see attitude but were no longer willing to wait and offered higher prices to secure winning bids," a Toyota dealer surnamed Gong said yesterday at the auction.
In addition, the recovering economy and bigger discounts have helped lift vehicle sales since March as well as demand for car plates.
"Many car owners have got their models and are eager to register so they will pay high prices," Gong said.
China's vehicle sales have rebounded since February, driven by the heated demand for small cars after the government halved the tax on vehicles with engine capacity of 1.6 liters or below to 5 percent in January.
Many car makers and dealers have offered even further discounts since March to entice buyers and move stock before launching new models at the nation's premier car expo, Auto Shanghai, which runs from April 22 until 28.
It was the first auction to be held after the future of the plate auction system was assured until 2012.
The Shanghai government auctioned 6,500 car plates yesterday, 500 more than March, and the average price for a plate rose from 27,552 yuan (US$4,030) to 28,724 yuan. The minimum price also rose, increasing 1,700 yuan to 28,300 yuan during the same period. About 17,654 people bid for the plates, 921 less than last month.
Auto dealers believed the rebound in price was because of a government assurance that the auction system would not be abolished.
It's believed that many car owners stayed away from the auctions in February and March after a government official said the system would be dropped when the city's public transport had improved sufficiently.
But Zhu Junyi, from the auto industry research office under the Shanghai Economic Committee's Information Center, said last week the auction was unlikely to be phased out until 2012 due to insufficient public transport and the dominance of cars.
"Car owners had adopted a wait-and-see attitude but were no longer willing to wait and offered higher prices to secure winning bids," a Toyota dealer surnamed Gong said yesterday at the auction.
In addition, the recovering economy and bigger discounts have helped lift vehicle sales since March as well as demand for car plates.
"Many car owners have got their models and are eager to register so they will pay high prices," Gong said.
China's vehicle sales have rebounded since February, driven by the heated demand for small cars after the government halved the tax on vehicles with engine capacity of 1.6 liters or below to 5 percent in January.
Many car makers and dealers have offered even further discounts since March to entice buyers and move stock before launching new models at the nation's premier car expo, Auto Shanghai, which runs from April 22 until 28.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
