How to "ride the wind and waves" in automobile exports
In 2023, China exported 1.203 million new energy vehicles; The total export of complete vehicles was 4.91 million, a year-on-year increase of 57.9%, and it is expected to jump to the world's first place for the first time. Against the backdrop of a surge in automobile exports, more and more car companies are starting to buy ships, build ships, and build their own ocean going fleets. The picture shows SAIC Anji Shencheng preparing to embark on its maiden voyage at the dock.
In 2023, SAIC's overseas sales reached 1.208 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 18.8%; SAIC's independent brand sales account for nearly 92%, while new energy vehicle sales account for nearly 24%. Among them, the MG4 EV became the best-selling compact pure electric vehicle in Europe, with SAIC MG brand selling over 840000 vehicles worldwide. The picture shows the MG new car ready for export to the European market.
On January 17th, as a bottle of champagne was thrown and shattered at the bow of the ship, the SAIC Anji Shencheng officially completed its naming ceremony and bottle throwing ceremony, welcoming thousands of new cars into the ship with the sound of a whistle and embarking on its maiden voyage to Europe.
In recent years, Chinese car companies represented by SAIC Motor Corporation have started waving checks, buying and renting ships with great enthusiasm, and becoming ship owners. "National wheel manufacturing and national vehicle transportation" has become a hot topic of concern from all walks of life. Considering that China's automobile exports are steadily increasing, such scenes may become increasingly common during the New Year.
At the recent press conference of the State Council Information Office, Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology Xin Guobin stated that in 2023, China's automobile exports reached 4.91 million units, a year-on-year increase of 57.9%, and it is expected to become the world's number one for the first time.
From learning step by step in the domestic market to becoming the world's largest exporter of automobiles; In recent years, with more and more car brands boarding the fast train of "Made in China and Exported to the World", Chinese cars have also obtained tickets to enter the world stage, from becoming shipowners themselves to going global in the entire industry chain.
The surge in automobile exports has cultivated more "shipowners"
It is reported that the SAIC Anji Shencheng is 200 meters long and 38 meters wide, with a height equivalent to 13 floors. It is the first ocean going car transport ship (roll on/roll off) commissioned by SAIC Group to be built by China Shipbuilding Corporation. The ship has 7600 parking spaces and a displacement of over 40000 tons.
It is worth mentioning that SAIC Anji Shencheng innovatively adopts LNG dual fuel clean power, which can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 30%. As the largest and most domestically produced clean energy roll on/roll off ship in the world, the inaugural voyage of SAIC Anji Shencheng will carry independent brand new cars from SAIC, Dongfeng, and Yutong to Europe.
"We have invested more than 10 billion yuan in roll on/roll off ships, based on our confidence in the growth of China's automobile exports." Zhao Aimin, Secretary of the Party Committee and Deputy General Manager of SAIC International, told reporters that SAIC's Anji Logistics has built China's largest self operated fleet of automobile enterprises, with 31 various types of automobile ships, and opened 7 international self operated routes in Southeast Asia, Mexico, South America West, Europe, and other regions. In the next three years, 14 ocean going transport ships will gradually join SAIC Anji Logistics' ocean going fleet, actively supporting Chinese brands to accelerate cross-border shipping.
Behind the full expansion of SAIC's ocean going fleet is the rapid growth of SAIC Group's overseas business.
It is understood that SAIC's overseas sales reached 1.208 million vehicles in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 18.8%. In the export of Chinese automobile enterprises, SAIC Group has been leading for 8 consecutive years, helping China's vehicle exports catch up with Japan and leap to the world's first place.
Among them, SAIC's independent brand sales accounted for nearly 92%, and new energy vehicle sales accounted for nearly 24%. It is worth mentioning that in 2023, SAIC's first global car, the MG4 EV, became the best-selling compact pure electric vehicle in Europe; The global sales of SAIC MG brand exceed 840000 vehicles, ranking among the top 10 single brand sales in multiple countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, and India.
According to the plan, SAIC Group aims to achieve sales of 1.35 million vehicles in overseas markets by 2024 and 1.5 million vehicles by 2025, gradually becoming a global automotive company.
In Zhao Aimin's view, facing the rapid growth of automobile exports, enterprises must anticipate the demand for ship transportation capacity in advance. He said that car companies investing in ships need to consider many factors comprehensively, not only serving their future car export strategy, but also taking into account other car companies, and going global together.
"While doing automotive export business, we deeply feel that the trend of Chinese manufacturing in the global market is positive." Zhao Aimin said that relying on the advantages of Chinese manufacturing and the accumulation of electrification and intelligence in the Chinese automotive industry, Chinese automotive companies are bound to occupy a place in the global automotive market.
According to statistical data, in 2023, China exported 4.91 million complete vehicles of automobiles; Among them, the export of new energy vehicles was 1.203 million, a year-on-year increase of 77.6%. The export of power batteries reached 127.4 GWh, a year-on-year increase of 87.1%. A research institution predicts that the production and sales of China's automotive industry will reach 31 million vehicles by 2024, a slight increase of about 3% year-on-year; The production and sales of new energy vehicles reached about 11.5 million units, an increase of about 20%.
Strengthening software and hardware support for self built fleets
"The current global instability is increasing, and Chinese car companies are building their own fleets, which is conducive to building a self controlled 'overseas supply chain'. Pan Helin, co-director and researcher of the Digital Economy and Financial Innovation Research Center at the International Business School of Zhejiang University, believes that building a self built fleet can not only improve the export capacity of cars, but more importantly, reduce transportation costs and establish a good brand image of Chinese new energy vehicles through energy-saving and carbon reduction methods.".
The reporter learned that due to the sharp increase in China's automobile exports in recent years, the rent of ocean going car transport ships, which bear the main transportation capacity, has been continuously increasing, and even at one point, it was difficult to find a single ship. From 2020 to 2023, the daily transportation price of a long-distance car transport ship with 6500 standard parking spaces has increased by more than 10 times.
Jin Qi, General Manager of SAIC Anji Logistics, stated that the investment cycle for ocean going fleets is relatively long, and there are also many challenges in safety, cost management, and other aspects of automobile ocean going transportation.
"Therefore, the SAIC Anji Shencheng is of milestone significance. It is not only because this ship has used new fuel, successfully saving energy and reducing carbon emissions; more importantly, for the long-distance transportation of new energy vehicles, it has also undergone many targeted modifications." Jin Qi said, looking forward to accumulating more experience and providing safer and more efficient logistics solutions for China's new energy vehicle exports.
It is understood that as one of the "hidden champions" of the industrial chain under SAIC Group, Anji Logistics has become the world's largest automotive logistics company after long-term development. Anji Logistics has taken the lead in creating a multimodal transportation model of public transportation, rail transportation, and water transportation. Its business covers nearly 600 cities in China and more than 100 countries overseas, with an annual transportation volume of up to 10 million vehicles. It is worth mentioning that in addition to brands under SAIC Group, Anji Logistics also provides overseas vehicle logistics services to many Chinese car companies such as Dongfeng, Yutong, and Great Wall.
Pan and Lin suggest that on the basis of building their own fleet, Chinese car companies should pay attention to diversified layouts in the local market when going abroad. He said, "Firstly, it is necessary to understand and abide by local laws and regulations, strengthen communication and cooperation with the local government. More importantly, building a self built fleet requires a dual guarantee system of software and hardware, especially to prevent maritime risks caused by geopolitical crises."
The relevant person in charge of SAIC Group stated that by 2025, the sales of SAIC's independent brands will account for 60%, the sales of new energy vehicles will account for 50%, and the sales of intelligent connected vehicles will exceed 50%. In terms of automobile exports, SAIC Group's sales share in overseas markets will exceed 20%, and it will continue to promote structural optimization, completing the transition of development momentum between new and old tracks.
Facing the challenges of going global and holding onto the growth trend of automobile exports
Xu Haidong, Deputy Chief Engineer of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, analyzed that there will be significant changes in the global automotive supply chain in the future. China is not only the world's largest market, but also gathers important global automotive supply chain enterprises.
He believes that as China's automobile exports gradually increase, it is necessary to accelerate the layout of relevant industrial chains and supporting facilities in key overseas markets. In order to promote the high-quality development of the new energy vehicle industry, it is necessary to accelerate the layout of previously overlooked links such as power battery recycling.
"From 2011 to 2023, China's automobile exports overseas were mainly focused on trade. After 2030, it may be mainly focused on overseas production through direct investment." Xu Haidong reminded that overseas production poses significant challenges for Chinese enterprises. "How to export domestic values and management models overseas, and how to hire and manage personnel overseas, all need to be given priority consideration by relevant enterprises."
Zhao Aimin told reporters that when going abroad to overseas markets, whether it's port terminals or supply chain procurement, if Chinese car companies can cooperate together, they can have more cost advantages. "Regardless of which car brand, as the export volume of cars increases, it is inevitable to pay more attention to the management of supply chain and transportation links."
In fact, the Chinese automotive industry still faces some challenges when going global. In the external situation, some countries and regions engage in abusive trade remedies and protectionist practices; In the industry itself, most new energy vehicle companies still face the challenge of "difficult profitability". In addition, some companies still have shortcomings in areas such as automotive chips.
As one of the "maternal families" of SAIC Anji Shencheng and the world's largest shipbuilding group, the experience of China Shipbuilding Group may provide some reference.
In 2023, China has for the first time formed a full spectrum of ship and marine product assembly and construction capabilities, which also means that all ship types can be built in China. According to the latest data released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, in 2023, China has ranked first in the world for 14 consecutive years in the three major shipbuilding industry indicators of shipbuilding completion, new orders taken, and handheld orders, with an international market share exceeding 50% for the first time.
It is worth mentioning that in the context of setting the goal of "peaking carbon emissions and achieving carbon neutrality" and vigorously promoting the transformation of energy consumption structure, China's new green power ship orders account for more than half of the international market share for the first time.
According to analysis by Guoxin Securities, China's automotive industry has entered a mature stage from a growth stage, and structural development opportunities lie in going global and transforming into electric intelligence. Domestic automotive parts companies have excellent production processes and cost control capabilities. In recent years, they have been able to provide localized supply to vehicle customers and vigorously explore markets in North America, Mexico, Europe, Southeast Asia, and other regions.
"The number of car exports from a country is calculated based on the principle of territoriality, and Chinese car exports also include the number of cars produced and exported by foreign brands locally." Fu Bingfeng, Executive Vice President and Secretary General of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, said that China's car globalization pace was relatively late, and in recent years, it has only entered the international market on a large scale. Chinese car companies' overseas layout and technology export have just begun, and it is necessary to have a rational view of China's export performance and maintain the hard-earned growth trend of car exports.
Fu Bingfeng stated that the entry of Chinese cars into the international market is a long-term task and a systematic project. In the future, with the deepening of automotive intelligence, the intelligent advantages of Chinese automotive products will be further leveraged in overseas markets, with great potential.
China Youth Daily · China Youth Network Reporter Xu Yajie Source: China Youth Daily
Source: China Youth Daily · Travel Weekly
