New cars are advertised for sale at deep discounts in the Zcar showroom in Chengdu. REUTERS/Zhang Yan
On the outskirts of Chengdu, a city of 21 million, a showroom in a shopping mall offers extraordinary deals on new cars.
Visitors can choose from some 5,000 vehicles. Locally made Audis are 50% off. A seven-seater SUV from China’s FAW is about $22,300, more than 60% below its sticker price. These deals are only possible because China has too many cars.
Years of subsidies and other government policies have aimed to make China a global automotive power and the world’s electric-vehicle leader. Domestic automakers have achieved those goals and more – and that’s the problem.
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