Drei hochrangige Konferenzen setzen erneut die Richtung, und der Staat wird die Kampagne gegen die "Rattenrennen" in der Automobilbranche konsequent fortsetzen.
From the slogan put forward at the end of July last year to the current intensive, continuous and specific meetings and policies, the Chinese auto market is undergoing a large - scale anti - "involution" revolution.
Last week, for three consecutive days, several authoritative departments, including the State Council, the Fourth Central Steering Group, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the State Administration for Market Regulation, held meetings respectively to carry out another round of anti - "involution" rectification of the new energy vehicle industry. Three high - level meetings in three days, from the State Council to ministries and commissions and then to the implementation level, the policy instructions were transmitted layer by layer.
This rare frequency of meetings sends a clear signal: the vicious competition in the new energy vehicle industry has touched the policy red line, and the government - led industry rectification has officially entered the practical stage.
Anti - "involution" is not just empty talk
Let's first take a look at the three meetings. On July 16, the executive meeting of the State Council specifically listened to the report on "standardizing the competition order of the new energy vehicle industry" and clearly proposed to focus on promoting the high - quality development of the new energy vehicle industry and effectively standardize the competition order of the new energy vehicle industry.
Regarding how to implement it specifically, Xinhua News Agency provided a detailed interpretation that night. It includes strengthening cost investigations and price monitoring, strengthening supervision and inspection of product production consistency, and urging key auto enterprises to fulfill their commitments to pay suppliers within 60 days, and building a long - term governance mechanism. In simple terms, this meeting sent a signal to crack down on selling cars at a loss and trading price for volume, and put an extra lock on auto enterprises to fulfill their payment term commitments.
Following that, on July 17, the Fourth Central Steering Group focused on the special work of "comprehensively rectifying the irrational competition issues in the new energy vehicle industry" and conducted on - the - spot research at the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. They also held discussions with BAIC Group, BYD Group, and the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. It is understood that Zhang Jianyong and Wang Chuanfu, the top leaders of BAIC and BYD Group, attended this meeting.
The meeting on July 18 not only covered a wider range, with the initiators changing from the guiding level to the implementation level, but also put forward a number of specific anti - "involution" measures. Specifically, on the 18th, the three ministries, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the State Administration for Market Regulation, jointly held a symposium on the new energy vehicle industry to deploy further work on standardizing the competition order of the new energy vehicle industry. This includes strengthening supervision and management, deeply promoting product price monitoring, product consistency supervision and inspection, and shortening the payment period for suppliers; improving the long - term mechanism and strengthening the leading role of standards. It is understood that 17 key auto enterprises participated in this meeting.
Judging from the time, initiators, participants and meeting contents, the three meetings in three days were closely linked, covering everything from guidance to implementation. The author believes that the intensively held meetings have two functions. One is to show the official's attitude of continuous follow - up, and the other is to clearly indicate the determination to fight against "involution".
From the end of July last year to now, in the past year, the anti - "involution" campaign in the auto industry has gradually moved from slogans to concrete actions. In the first half of this year, multiple government departments and organizations have started to strengthen the rectification of "involution" in the auto industry. For example, at the end of May, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers issued an initiative, pointing out that enterprises should not engage in disorderly "price wars"; in June, the National Federation of Industry and Commerce Auto Dealers Chamber of Commerce issued an initiative against "involution - style" competition; and major auto enterprises responded to the call and announced to shorten the payment period to 60 days.
Despite the continuous initiatives, onlookers are not optimistic about the specific implementation of the policies. Taking the 60 - day payment period as an example, although many auto enterprises have followed up, the public believes that the commitments of auto enterprises are rather general, and there is too much room for covert manipulation in actual implementation. Issuing announcements seems more like a superficial effort. To dispel public doubts and show the determination of tough governance, at the beginning of July, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology officially opened an online window for reporting problems (suggestions) on key auto enterprises' fulfillment of the payment period commitment, mainly accepting four types of problems related to the "60 - day payment period commitment".
From the introduction of policies to the after - sales of actual implementation, it can be seen that the government's anti - "involution" this time is not just empty talk, but with full courage and determination.
Behind this strong - handed intervention is a clear understanding of the essence of "involution" - when vicious competition distorts the efficient resource allocation function that the market should have, simply relying on the market's own rectification mechanism often incurs huge costs and yields little results.
Government intervention is a necessity
The fundamental problem of "involution" is the competition among auto enterprises for the core resource of "users". In China, the market plays a decisive role in resource allocation, but "involution" is a tumor bred in the deformed industry. If we rely solely on the market's self - cleaning function to eradicate it, not only will a large amount of human and material resources be wasted in meaningless competition, but it will also greatly hinder the healthy development of the industry.
Therefore, when the "invisible hand" loses its effect, the "visible hand" supports the industry.
As industry insiders said, the key to anti - "involution" is for leading enterprises to set a good example. For leading auto enterprises like BYD and BAIC, which are large - scale and have a profound influence, their every move affects the nerves of the entire industry. When they take the lead in promising to shorten the payment period and avoid vicious price wars, they can undoubtedly send a strong signal and guide the industry trend towards a healthier and more sustainable direction. The formation of industry consensus requires the demonstration and leadership of these "leading geese" to jointly maintain a market environment of fair competition, respect for rules, and emphasis on long - term value.
However, the ideal industry self - discipline is often powerless in the face of cruel real - world competition. Expecting all enterprises, especially small and medium - sized enterprises forced into the competition due to great survival pressure, to voluntarily give up the temptation of possible short - term market share and actively abandon the "quick - fix" of "trading price for volume" itself involves huge moral risks and practical difficulties.
Even if leading enterprises are willing to lead, they may face the embarrassment of "bad money driving out good money": once some enterprises launch price wars and extend the payment period for suppliers at all costs for survival or radical expansion, those "good students" who abide by the rules may lose market share and be in a passive position. At this time, relying only on appeals and initiatives and lacking strong restraint and punishment mechanisms, industry consensus can easily become a mere formality or even empty talk.
The more core problem is that the root cause of "involution" often lies in the partial failure of the market mechanism at a specific stage of development. After the new energy vehicle industry has experienced a period of rapid growth and policy dividends, with the reduction of subsidies, the rapid expansion of production capacity, and the increase of new entrants, the market has shifted from incremental competition to stock competition. In order to compete for limited user resources, enterprises instinctively choose the most direct and intense competition means, which is price. Once this kind of competition gets out of control, it will turn into a vicious cycle of "harming the enemy by one thousand and self - harming eight hundred".
The "invisible hand" of the market is often lagging in adjusting this structural contradiction. The process of its spontaneous adjustment, such as the bankruptcy of auto enterprises, is usually accompanied by huge resource waste and social costs, which is not the optimal path. Allowing the market to "clear" on its own would be too costly and the risks would be unacceptable for the Chinese new energy vehicle industry, which is still climbing the slope and striving for a leading position globally.
Therefore, when the boundary of "industry self - discipline" is constantly eroded by real - world competition pressure and the market mechanism seems powerless in correcting the stubborn problem of "involution", the timely and powerful intervention of the government's "visible hand" is no longer an option but a necessity. The three high - level meetings in three days and the policy combination from top - level design to specific implementation are a concentrated manifestation of this necessity. The government's role is not to simply "stifle", but to "clear the blockages" for the effective operation of the market mechanism by establishing rules, setting boundaries, strengthening supervision, and creating a fair environment.
The government's intervention essentially provides a "safety net" and "escort" for the sustainable development of the industry. It does not replace the market, but creates a more predictable and fairer competition environment for leading and small and medium - sized enterprises by making up for the shortcomings of market failure and correcting the distorted competition order. In this environment, enterprises can truly shift their focus from meaningless internal strife to key areas related to long - term development, such as enhancing core competitiveness, exploring the global market, and leading technological innovation.
Anti - "involution" requires industry awakening and the reshaping of rules. For the Chinese new energy vehicle industry to truly achieve a high - quality leap from "big" to "strong", it cannot do without the sense of responsibility of leading enterprises, and even more so without the strong guidance and regulation of the government. The intensive tone - setting of these "three meetings" marks that this profound transformation led by the government, participated in by the industry, aiming to end internal strife and reshape the ecosystem, has entered the crucial stage of taking real action. The road to anti - involution in the auto industry is long and arduous, but the direction is clear and the determination is firm.
This article is from the WeChat official account "Auto Commune", author: Sai Jiatong. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.