Shanghai (ZXZC)- Sichuan province will subsidize new-vehicle sales produced locally to help spur demands and cushion the impact of the coronavirus outbreak.

Rural consumers across the country who purchase trucks with a load of 3.5 tons or below or passenger vehicles with emissions of 1.6 liters or below will be given subsidies of as least RMB1,000 per car by local governments from April 10 to August 10, 2020, according to a document jointly issued by Sichuan's provincial departments of economic & information, commerce and finance.

(Photo source: Hyundai Truck & Bus)

It is noteworthy that the new subsidy is an additional incentive on the basis of preferential prices offered by automakers over the past year. Besides, the cash handouts are merely available to vehicles locally produced in Sichuan, which has manufacturing plants of such automakers as FAW-Toyota, FAW-Volkswagen, Hyundai Truck & Bus, Volvo, DPCA (Dongfeng Peugeot Citroen Automobile Co.,Ltd.), Brilliance Auto as well as Yema.

Moreover, the latest policy also encourages car manufacturers to increase the subsidies to automobile replacement, interest subsidies to loans, extend the validity period of maintenance service and quality warranty.

Under the new policy, municipal or prefectural governments in Sichuan have the right to design details of measures and standards based on their own circumstances. Thus the amounts of subsidies are varied with change of locations, while RMB1,000 is the bottom line. The money shall be appropriated from the local government's fiscal funds with proper aid of Sichuan Provincial Industry Development Fund.

Up until now, a number of cities in China, such as Foshan, Guangzhou, Changsha, Zhuzhou, Xiangtan, Nanchang, Zhuhai, Chongqing, Changchun, and Ningbo, have all announced the policies about subsidy offering.