"Zero kilometers" have entered "long kilometers", and used car exports shine their value background

In the first half of this year, compared with the domestic market, which was under short-term pressure, the export volume of new cars was booming. The monthly export volume exceeded one million vehicles for the first time, becoming an important force in promoting the growth of my country's foreign trade. So in the six months since the implementation of the "Notice on Further Strengthening the Management of Used Car Exports"(hereinafter referred to as the "Notice"), what has the performance of used car exports?

Data from China Automobile Dealers Association shows that in the first half of 2026, my country exported a total of 325,000 used cars, with an export value of US$7.6 billion, an increase of 61% and 54% respectively over the same period last year. Although in terms of export magnitude, second-hand car exports in the first half of the year only accounted for 6.4% of the 5.096 million new car exports, the growth momentum and development potential cannot be underestimated, and the prerequisite for achieving this achievement is that the "zero-kilometer" second-hand cars are increasingly clear, and long-kilometer second-hand cars take their place to the center of the stage.

The logic of used car export has been completely rewritten

In the past few years, my country's second-hand car exports have shown a barbaric growth trend relying on "zero-kilometer" second-hand cars. In 2024, the country's export volume in the name of second-hand cars will be about 400,000 units, and in 2025, it will rise to 750,000 units. However, by 2026, the Ministry of Commerce and other four departments will jointly issue the "Notice" and come into effect, clearly stating that vehicles registered for less than 180 days are strictly restricted from being exported in the name of used cars, and must submit the "After-Sales Maintenance Service Confirmation" issued by the main engine factory. At this point, the underlying logic of my country's used car export has been completely rewritten.

Xiao Zhengsan, president of China Automobile Dealers Association, pointed out that the export of used cars has opened up a new growth track for the automobile circulation industry and formed a new pattern of two-way development of "domestic circulation + overseas exports." Especially with the implementation of the Notice, real used car exports are ushered in a development window period.

Katachi's research data shows that for half a year after the implementation of the "Notice", the used car export market has shown three major characteristics: short-term pain, long-term clearing, and structural growth, which is significantly different from the linear growth model in which new car exports continue to rise.

In the past six months, the industry has accelerated its reshuffle, forcing speculative companies to go out. The New Deal blocked the "zero-kilometer" used car arbitrage channel. A large number of small and medium-sized traders who relied on the transfer of new cars and lacked stable vehicle sources and compliance capabilities took the initiative to withdraw from the market. The industry bid farewell to barbaric growth, and long-kilometer used cars officially became the mainstream of exports.

Although export volume fluctuated in the first half of the year, the total volume remained resilient and the structure was significantly optimized. In particular, the export scale of long-kilometer practical models to emerging markets such as Africa, South America, and Southeast Asia has steadily increased; domestic car dealers have actively matched real overseas demand, the proportion of orders for economical fuel vehicles and hybrid models has continued to increase, and new energy used vehicles has achieved breakthroughs in exports in some policy-friendly countries. Due to the weak domestic terminal demand for used cars, a large number of existing vehicles are looking for export channels; overseas emerging markets have strong demand for cost-effective China used cars, which provides support for both sides of supply and demand.

However, Xu Runfeng, general manager of the Kataichi Automobile Ecosystem Platform, believes that the current export of used cars cannot continue to advance like new cars. New cars rely on the large-scale and standardized system of the main engine factory and have the foundation for continuous increase in volume, while used cars are "one vehicle in one condition", with scattered vehicle sources and weak cross-border supporting facilities. There is naturally a bottleneck of scale. Therefore, the future growth of used car exports will be stable Structural growth, not explosive growth.

Platform-based export enterprises usher in a development window

In the past two years, my country's used car exports have soared sharply, but in the view of the China Automobile Dealers Association, 2026 is the "first year of used car exports." In 2024, my country's used car export qualification approval will be fully liberalized. So far, more than 2800 companies across the country have passed the registration of used car export qualifications. The implementation of this year's "Notice" did not have the enthusiasm to persuade enterprises to enter the bureau. Only 426 new registered enterprises were added in the first half of the year. In the first half of the year, the top ten companies in export volume accounted for 62% of the entire industry, and industry concentration further increased.

Qian Chao, general manager of the used car business unit of Automobile Home, said frankly: "Previously, the rapid growth of used car exports was mainly driven by 'zero-kilometer' used cars. With the implementation of the New Deal, the 'zero-kilometer' used car exit channel has basically been closed, and our opportunity has come."

Xu Runfeng told reporters that in the past six months, the "Notice" has been implemented in an orderly manner, the regulatory standards of various ports and local commercial authorities have been gradually unified, and regulatory requirements such as export review, license management, and verification of modified vehicles for vehicles registered less than 180 days have continued to be tightened. The policy red line is clear. However, there are still subtle differences in implementation scales between different regions. Some small and medium-sized practitioners still have blind spots in their understanding of compliance declarations, testing standards, and data requirements. There is still room for improvement in industry compliance training and standard publicity.

At the same time, the industry still has to deal with pain points such as difficulty in integrating vehicle sources and cross-border after-sales services. To this end, Kataichi relies on the national chain trading market and institutional retired vehicle sources (leasing, online ride-hailing, and replacement of vehicles by main engine factories) to establish a centralized procurement channel, and uses a digital platform to complete unified screening of vehicle conditions and batch matching of overseas orders, promoting the transition from scattered collection of vehicles to large-scale and standardized centralized procurement. In addition, Kataichi is also building a full-link layout of "domestic vehicle source base-port maintenance center overseas distribution and after-sales outlets". The domestic market relies on the national market to integrate compliant export vehicle sources and set up standardized export inspection and maintenance parks in key ports. At the same time, it cooperates with overseas partners to explore the construction of parts centers and maintenance outlets to promote the industry from single vehicle trade to integrated export of vehicles + services.

my country's used car industry is still in a stage where vehicle sources are scattered and business entities are small and scattered. It is difficult for a single car dealer to accurately meet the needs of overseas customers. At the same time, it is not easy for all car dealers to be proficient in the used car export business. Ouyang Lingshan, executive director of Hongmeng Cloud of Chengdu Hongmeng Automobile Group, said that in the face of industry pain points, Hongmeng Automobile has created a cloud technology smart platform to display vehicles in the market online and simultaneously present them to overseas customers. At the same time, Hongmeng Automobile's overseas business center has penetrated into 100 countries around the world, and has invested in building international automobile cities in Central Asia and Southeast Asia, which can assist domestic car dealers to carry out used car export business more conveniently.

Reasonable layout and coordination of industrial chain collaboration

In 2026, by abandoning impetuousness and saying no to "zero kilometers", used car exports will officially enter the "long kilometers" era, and market characteristics such as model structure, price, age and advantageous markets will also change accordingly.

Lang Xuehong, deputy secretary-general of China Automobile Dealers Association, said that in the first five months of this year, second-hand car exports showed a significant divergence: export business dominated by "zero-kilometer" second-hand cars fell off a cliff, while exports of second-hand cars with real driving mileage were growing rapidly, which means that the industry is returning to the essence of foreign trade in second-hand cars.

Global used car import data compiled by China Automobile Dealers Association shows that Africa is the region with the most concentrated import of used cars, accounting for more than 30% of the global used car trade volume; followed by the Middle East and Central Asia, with the United Arab Emirates serving as a transit port, and a large number of car sources are re-exported to Africa. As the most populous country in Africa, with a population of more than 200 million, Nigeria has an annual demand for imported used cars of about 1 million. It is an important target market.

Lang Xuehong suggested that companies can refer to the distribution of overseas ownership of China brands. Currently, Latin America accounts for the highest proportion of ownership, exceeding 20%, the Middle East is about 20%, the Eurasian Union is about 15%, and the European Union is about 15%. These data can be used as a reference for the base of used cars. In terms of brands, Chery, BYD, SAIC and other car companies rank among the top exporters. In terms of power structure, the European Union, Southeast Asia and other regions account for a relatively high proportion due to new energy vehicles affected by policy support, while areas with weak infrastructure such as Latin America and Africa still focus on fuel vehicles. Oil exporting countries in the Middle East also prefer traditional energy vehicles. Therefore, companies need to choose overseas regions for layout according to local conditions.

It is reported that Geely Automobile Group has strategically deployed the used car export business. Xu Chaohui, director of the used car business department of Geely Automobile Group, said that he is considering opening up a complete link of used cars replaced from the new car market, purchasing, preparing, and exporting in batches, and exploring the export model of factory-brand used cars. He said frankly: "In addition to the coordinated sailing of used cars, vehicle after-sales and spare parts, we also hope to join forces with financial institutions to go to sea together. If we can cooperate with trading companies, financial institutions, car condition inquiry companies, testing companies, and used car platform companies to go abroad, it will provide great support for manufacturers and brands to systematically go abroad, and it will also give overseas customers more peace of mind when purchasing used China cars."

Actively transform and match the new pattern of used car exports

Faced with structural changes in the used car export market, Xu Runfeng used Kataichi as an example and proposed four directions for the transformation of export enterprises.

First, promote the transformation of product screening strategies and implement market-based determination of vehicle sources. Abandon the previous extensive model of exporting when there is a car. Relying on the company's digital vehicle source management system, differentiated vehicle access standards are established for different overseas markets. For example, we should select durable and convenient models for Africa; increase the supply of long-kilometer high-quality vehicles for South America, strictly screen out problematic vehicles, and use standardized vehicle condition files to enhance the trust of overseas buyers.

Secondly, promote the transformation of overseas layout strategies, refine zoning operations, and go out to sea rationally. There are significant differences in market policies, regulations, and consumer demand in Africa and South America. Relying on the layout of port export bases, the company distinguishes between models that match the needs of countries in East Africa, West Africa and South America, studies import tariffs, vehicle age control, and access certification requirements in advance, continues to optimize cross-border logistics solutions, effectively controls the comprehensive cost of going to sea, and eliminates blind market development.

Thirdly, promote the transformation of business models and upgrade from a simple vehicle trader to a comprehensive service provider. Entering the "long kilometer" era, overseas customers are paying close attention to the cost of subsequent vehicles, and it is difficult to continue relying solely on the price difference between bare cars. Kataichi adopts an integrated delivery plan of "vehicles + accessories + digital vehicle condition files" to prepare vehicles for departure from Hong Kong. It cooperates with overseas partners to build a spare parts warehousing and maintenance network, and relies on value-added services to escape the low-cost "inner spiral" competition.

Fourth, promote the transformation of business models and embrace platform-based ecological collaboration. Domestic vehicle sources are scattered and overseas information barriers are high. It is difficult to become bigger and stronger by individual strength alone. Moreover, the one-on-one model of relying on information difference to arbitrage is no longer feasible. Kataichi leverages the advantages of national vehicle source integration, standardized testing, and supply chain supporting to export compliant vehicle sources, standard systems and supporting resources to cooperative traders; overseas partners are deeply engaged in local channels, complementing each other's advantages and jointly building an industrial ecosystem.

Xu Runfeng emphasized that in the long run, the essence of second-hand car exports entering the "long kilometer" era is to return to their commercial origins. Relying on the huge domestic car ownership, it accurately matches the travel needs of emerging markets around the world. Only by adhering to compliance operations, standardization of vehicle conditions, and improving localized supporting services can China's used car exports find a long-term and stable development path that is misaligned with new car exports.

Source: Automobile Export Connect, China Automobile News Network

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