外資車企不懼中國罰單

For multinational car companies operating in China, the euphoria from the biggest ever automotive boom in industrial history is finally being tempered by some unexpected risks, most notably a controversial investigation by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) into allegedly anti-competitive behaviour by Audi, Mercedes-Benz and other brands.

對在華運營的跨國車企來說，從工業歷史上最大規模的汽車繁榮中獲得的欣快感最終被一些意料之外的風險沖淡了，其中最引人矚目的是中國國家發改委(NDRC)對奧迪(Audi)、梅賽德斯-奔馳(Mercedes-Benz)等汽車品牌所謂的壟斷行爲展開的富有爭議性的調查。

The investigations have so far resulted in fines that are peanuts in comparison to the vast profits that foreign automakers have enjoyed over recent years – and continue to enjoy.

迄今爲止，調查已經導致這些跨國車企受罰——與它們近幾年（而且現在仍在繼續）獲得的鉅額利潤相比，這些罰款微不足道。

In July, a joint venture between Volkswagen unit Audi and state-owned First Auto Works was ordered to pay $41m for alleged violations of China’s 2008 Anti-Monopoly Law. This compares with reported operating profits of $12.2bn for VW’s joint ventures in China (its other is with SAIC Motor) last year.

今年7月，大衆汽車(Volkswagen)旗下品牌奧迪與中國國企一汽(First Auto Works)成立的一家合資企業因涉嫌違反中國2008年出臺的《反壟斷法》而被勒令支付4100萬美元的罰款，而大衆在華的合資企業去年實現營業利潤122億美元。大衆在中國還和上汽集團(SAIC Motor)成立有合資企業。

Fiat unit Chrysler was also hit with a small fine this summer, while Daimler’s joint venture with BAIC Motor, which makes Mercedes-Benz saloons, is still awaiting the outcome of an NDRC investigation after one of its Shanghai sales offices was raided in July.

菲亞特(Fiat)旗下的克萊斯勒(Chrysler)今年夏天也被處以金額不大的罰款，同時戴姆勒(Daimler)與北汽(BAIC Motor)成立的一家制造梅賽德斯-奔馳轎車的合資企業仍在等待中國國家發改委的調查結果——今年7月，該合資企業在上海的一家銷售公司遭到突擊搜查。

These fines are the byproduct of a wide-ranging investigation that appears to have a much larger aim – forcing car companies, regardless of whether they are in fact guilty of anti-competitive practices, to lower the prices of their vehicles, spare parts and services.

這些罰款是一場似乎有着更大目標的廣泛調查——即迫使跨國車企降低汽車、備件和服務的價格，無論它們是否真的違反了反壟斷法——的副產品。

According to one industry executive, the head of a multinational company’s China operations has told visiting board members that, in view of the NDRC’s offensive, his biggest fear is of a sudden shift in government policy. “It’s bad for business,” the executive says of the investigation. “It has made the investment environment very uncertain.

一位業內高管透露，某跨國車企的中國區負責人曾向到訪的董事會成員表示，考慮到中國國家發改委的調查，他最大的擔憂是政府政策會突然轉變。這位高管在談到此次調查時表示：“它對企業不利，它讓投資環境變得非常不確定。”

“If people can afford the cars, they can afford the spare parts and after-sales service,” he adds. “It’s not like the NDCR is lowering the price of medical care or making food cheaper.”

他補充稱：“如果人們買得起汽車，他們就能買得起備件和售後服務。它與發改委降低醫療或食品價格不一樣。”

Foreign automobile executives argue that the relatively high prices asked for cars – especially premium vehicles that can be almost twice as expensive in China as they are in the US – is a function of unprecedented demand, even for overseas models subject to expensive import taxes.

外國車企高管辯稱，汽車價格相對較高（尤其是高檔車在中國的售價幾乎是美國的兩倍）反映出中國前所未有的購車需求，即便是對需要繳納高昂進口關稅的海外車型。

China’s car craze began in earnest in 2008-09, during the depths of the global financial crisis, when it overtook the US as the world’s largest car market.

中國汽車熱潮的真正興起，始於全球金融危機最嚴重時期的2008年至2009年，當時它超過美國，成爲全球最大的汽車市場。

Demand from entire generations of first-time drivers soared in the world’s second-largest economy, just as purchasing power collapsed in the US and Europe – a nadir symbolically marked by Washington’s bailout of General Motors in December 2008.

在中國這個全球第二大經濟體，整整好幾代人都是首次開車，由此購車需求大幅飆升，同時美國和歐洲的購買力大幅下降，華盛頓在2008年12月紓困通用汽車(General Motors)標誌着這種下降達到了谷底。

Over the ensuing half decade, foreign carmakers in China, especially long established ones such as Volkswagen and GM, had a licence to print money.

在隨後的5年裏，在中國市場運營的外國汽車製造商（尤其是大衆和通用這類老牌車企）賺得盆滿鉢溢。

Even last year, when double-digit annual growth was finally expected to taper, annual sales grew by about 15 per cent to 18m passenger cars – 10 times as many as were sold in India.

去年，人們預計每年兩位數的增長終於將出現放緩，結果外國車企在華的乘用車銷量仍增長約15%至1800萬輛，是印度市場銷量的10倍。

This year began in similar fashion, especially for foreign brands and their Chinese joint venture companies. Sales of Chinese brands, however, began to fall sharply and their share of the passenger car market tumbled from 27 per cent to 23 per cent.

今年同樣如此，尤其是對外國品牌以及它們與中國的合資企業而言。然而，中國本土品牌的銷量開始急劇下滑，它們在乘用車市場的份額從27%降至23%。

The precipitous fall-off in sales of local brands and slower economic growth has forced the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers to lower its projection of an 8.3 per cent increase in year-on-year sales this year to 4.6 per cent – two-thirds down on last year.

由於中國本土品牌銷售大幅下滑和經濟增長放緩，中國汽車工業協會(China Association of Automobile Manufacturers)將今年全國汽車銷售將增長8.3%的預期下調至4.6%，較去年下降三分之二。

In the first quarter, Geely, the private sector carmaker most famous for its purchase of Volvo Cars from Ford, saw sales of its own-brand vehicles fall by as much as 40 per cent over the same period a year earlier.

私營汽車製造商吉利(Geely)在今年第一季度的自有品牌銷售同比下降40%。該公司最出名的是從福特(Ford)手中收購了沃爾沃汽車公司(Volvo Cars)。

This was despite a gradual improvement in the quality of local-brand cars in China, according to Geoff Broderick at JD Power, which publishes an annual customer survey of 212 models across 62 brands. “The domestic brands are doing exactly what they should be doing – focusing on quality,” Mr Broderick says. “But as we see the quality gap closing, we’re not seeing a pick-up in [local brands’] market share.”

J.D. Power的傑夫•布羅德里克(Geoff Broderick)表示，中國自主品牌汽車雖然質量逐步改善，但仍然出現了銷售下滑的局面。JD Power每年發佈消費者調查報告，涵蓋62個品牌的212款車型。布羅德里克表示：“國內品牌做的正是它們應該做的事情——致力於質量。但在我們看到質量差距縮小之際，我們並未看到（本土品牌的）市場份額上升。”

One reason for the fall has been a counterintuitive NDRC requirement that foreign-invested joint ventures develop a local brand for the China market, such as the Baojun saloon manufactured by GM, SAIC and Wuling. Many of these new entrants are priced to compete against domestic rivals, especially in smaller cities where car ownership rates are relatively low.

銷量下降的一個原因是發改委一項匪夷所思的規定，即外國投資的合資企業必須爲中國市場開發本土品牌，比如通用、上汽和五菱製造的寶駿轎車。這些新車型的定價有許多對國內車企構成了競爭，尤其是在汽車擁有率相對較低的中小城市。

“I don’t understand what the Chinese government’s objective was in encouraging foreign companies to create local brands,” says Bill Russo, a Shanghai-based industry consultant.

一位駐上海的行業諮詢顧問羅威(Bill Russo)表示：“我不理解中國政府鼓勵外國公司開發本土品牌是出於什麼用意。”

“It only cannibalises already distressed sales of local brands. I think the intent was for more technology to be shared by the foreign companies. But the unintended consequence is to take volume from local carmakers producing similar products,” he adds.

他補充稱：“它只會讓本土品牌本已低迷的銷量進一步下降。我認爲此舉的本意是讓外國公司與中方夥伴分享更多的技術，但沒料到結果反而是搶走了本土汽車製造商的同類產品的銷量。”

At the other end of the spectrum, foreign carmakers continue to thrive in saturated markets such as Beijing and Shanghai, where premium brands such as Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz account for a quarter of the market.

另一方面，外國汽車製造商繼續在北京和上海等已經飽和的市場高歌猛進——在這些城市，奧迪、寶馬(BMW)和奔馳等高端品牌佔據了四分之一的市場份額。

Even now, limits on expensive new licence plates to combat congestion and pollution are spurring their sales, as existing plate holders trade up.

各地爲解決交通擁堵和污染問題而出臺的汽車限購措施使得人們花大價錢才能獲得新牌照，這也刺激了外國車企的銷售，因爲現有的牌照持有人會去買高檔車。

“As cities implement plate restrictions, people gravitate towards premium foreign brands,” says Mr Russo. “They want to put their expensive plates on the best piece of automotive technology that they can.”

羅威表示：“隨着各城市實施牌照限制措施，人們越來越青睞外國高檔品牌汽車。他們花費不菲代價才獲得了牌照，因此希望儘可能地購買配備最先進技術的汽車。”