China's auto exports surpass imports for first time (Xinhua) Updated: 2005-12-04 16:27
China's auto exports exceeded imports for the first time
-- by 7,000 units in the first ten months this year, the Ministry of Commerce
reported Sunday, as a senior economic official warned of an industry
overcapacity.
Auto exports
more than doubled from January to October to 135,000 units, while imports fell
11.6 percent year-on-year to 128,000.
Ma Kai,
minister in charge of the influential National Development and Reform
Commission, told an on-going economic work conference in Beijing that the auto
industry was plagued by unneeded production.
The overcapacity has already
reached 2 million units, and the industry would be further pressured by an
estimated turnout of 2.2 million from auto plants that are being built, as well
as 8 million from those planned, Ma acknowledged.
He said overcapacity in some industries "was seen last
year, became prominent this year and would likely be exacerbated next year,"
adding that no new steel plants would obtain go-ahead in principle in 2006.
The Ministry of Commerce report said that exported
China-made automobile largely include trucks -- accounting for over half of the
total -- as well as low-priced small cars. Most of them went to developing
nations, such as Algeria, Syria and Vietnam.
Meanwhile, China imported costly, upscale sedans
from Japan, Germany and the United States, with an average price of 29,180 US
dollars. Under a commitment to the World Trade Organization, China will remove
tariffs on auto imports by the end of 2006.
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