BEIJING, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- China will accelerate the drafting of the development plan for the new energy vehicle (NEV) industry for the 2021-2035 period, said Xin Guobin, vice minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) at an industry conference held on Monday in Beijing.
Under the background of profound changes in the environment at home and abroad and new downward pressure on the economy, China's auto industry experienced negative growth for the first time after 28 years of sustained growth, entering the period of adjustment for the market and industrial structure, noted Xin.
Xin believed that the next three or five years would be a crucial stage for the automotive industry to overcome difficulties and gain momentum.
The officer pointed out that China's auto industry has already had a good development foundation, but needs to transform the development mode and optimize the industrial structure to realize high-quality development.
For that, Xin suggested to take concrete steps. Besides the development plan for the NEV industry, which should give clear orientations for the industry, he also stressed on the importance to update the scoring system for passenger car makers and importers which aims to reduce fuel consumption and boost NEV sales. The original version of the system was launched in 2017.
In addition, Xin proposed to step up innovation, strengthen basic industrial capabilities, further remove institutional restrictions and adopt more inclusive regulatory measures, allowing more development space for auto companies.
He also encouraged the industry to actively grab the opportunities brought by the Belt and Road Initiative, and explore more international cooperation. (Edited by Li Wenxin, liwenxin@xinhua.org)