Celebrating the start of production of the Mercedes-Benz long-wheelbase C-class at Beijing Benz Automotive this past July. Extremely high import taxes force local manufacturing.
Reports coming out of China from an official state news agency say the government in Jiangsu Province found Mercedes-Benz guilty of antitrust pricing violations, with price gouging the norm.
This is the latest government crackdown in China where in recent months there have been a series of Communist party sanctioned investigations into the price gouging on the sales of automobiles and replacement parts, encompassing BMW, Audi, and most recently General Motors.
Other global companies are also under scrutiny, not just automakers.
In response to anti-monopoly investigations by the National Development and Reform Commission, Daimler, the parent company of Mercedes-Benz, said it was cutting parts prices by an average of 15%. Daimler cooperated with the investigation. GM’s is ongoing.
Photo on page one: From right to left: Frank Deiss, President and CEO of BBAC, Hubertus Troska, member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG responsible for China, Xu Heyi, Chairman of BAIC Group, Chen Hongliang, Senior Executive Vice President of BBAC.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
