Analysis Of Middle And High Grade Commodity Tariffs

Half a month ago, the Ministry of Commerce announced that the import tariff of high-grade commodities in China will be further reduced. This is the general trend and there is a consensus among various departments.

Thus triggering

How to define luxury goods?

Liu Shangxi: luxury is not a necessity.

Zhao Ping: the concept of luxury is dynamic.

Beijing News: in the expression, the Ministry of Commerce stressed that

Liu Shangxi: there are some differences in the expression between high-end consumer goods and luxury goods. Luxury goods are high-end goods, and intermediate products are ambiguous.

One of the attributes of luxury is non essential goods. Since it is a necessity, it is beyond the actual need of a person's survival and development.

Its symbolic meaning and psychological feeling far exceed its practical function.

For example, some rich people are very rich. He can spend money on private aircraft and spend tens of thousands on one.

Zhao Ping: luxury is a very large area. There is no definite concept.

With the improvement of people's living standard, the concept of luxury goods is changing dynamically.

For example, more than a decade ago, we thought that cars were luxury goods, but now cars have become our walking tools and become the necessities of life that ordinary people can afford.

Therefore, the concept of luxury is a dynamic concept with the characteristics of the times.

We believe that the tax cuts in the import sector are aimed at those categories of consumer goods that originally belonged to luxury goods but have now been pformed into people's necessities.

For example, some imported cosmetics and imported milk powder.

Many middle-income children now drink imported milk powder. They can not be said to be luxuries, or the consumer goods that the ordinary people can not expect.

In foreign countries, milk powder and cosmetics are not luxuries, but the necessities of life for the people.

Does tariff reduction affect finance?

Liu Shangxi: import tax is an important tax source.

Zhao Ping: it does not mean a decline in revenue.

Beijing News: if we cancel or reduce the import tax, what will be the impact on fiscal revenue?

Liu Shangxi: in 2010, the three kinds of taxes (including customs duties, VAT and consumption tax) in the import sector were 1 trillion and 251 billion 847 million yuan. These taxes were all central taxes. They were the main sources of expenditure at the central level. In 2010, the expenditure at the central level was 1 trillion and 598 billion 973 million yuan.

If cancelled or lowered, it will have a great impact on revenue.

If the import tax is reduced, the revenue from the operation of import commodities may increase, but this part of the tax increase will not be enough to reduce the financial revenue brought down by the import tax.

Under the background of economic globalization, any country has import and export. If it is conducive to enhancing our interests, it is also worth reducing even more taxes.

The export tax rebate of about 730000000000 yuan in 2010 is mainly based on such considerations.

Zhao Ping: it is a process of structural adjustment not to lower the import tax on consumer goods, which means the decline of revenue.

The tax on the import tax of middle and high grade consumer goods will be reduced, but the income tax will increase if the income tax, value-added tax and business tax exist. This will result in a tax structure adjustment. Therefore, we should not establish a direct relationship between the import tax reduction of the middle and high grade consumer goods and the decline in revenue, and we can not statically investigate the fiscal revenue.

The economy is a large circular body, and imports will lead to the growth of other industries.

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Tax high leads to overseas consumption?

Liu Shangxi: tax cuts are unlikely to cut prices.

Zhao Ping: high tax is an important reason for overseas consumption.

Beijing News: is it because of the high import tax that leads to a large number of shopping trips and overseas purchasing?

Liu Shangxi: Generally speaking, the price of the place of production is lower than the selling price.

Foreign goods are sold to China. Prices in China are usually higher than foreign prices, including distribution costs, financial costs, pportation costs, storage costs and so on.

In addition, there are supply and demand relations. For example, some foreign brands, which are not well known in foreign countries, are middle grade goods, but their recognition in China is very high, and they become high-grade products.

The pursuit of luxury goods is far superior to foreign countries. This also leads to a higher price of imported luxury goods from the same brand in China than foreign countries, because domestic demand is bigger and the price is higher.

Another point is that Chinese residents can also get export tax rebates for shopping abroad, which makes foreign prices lower than domestic ones.

As for the taxation of import links, that is a marginal factor, and naturally it will lift prices.

But as long as the domestic pursuit of foreign luxury goods is unflaghand, even if the tax cuts are even lifted, the domestic luxury prices are hard to come down. That is to say, lowering taxes does not necessarily reduce prices, but the profit margins of luxury operators have expanded.

Zhao Ping: I think this is a very important reason.

Nowadays, Chinese people are buying high-end consumer goods all over the world, and the prices of similar foreign consumer goods are very cheap. In the pricing of imported consumer goods, the import tax is a very important factor.

At the same time, the purchase of high-end consumer goods by overseas Chinese is also related to the quantity and variety of goods.

Because our import tax is very high, many importers will assess which goods are not very fond of the other market. If they do not like them, they may not come in, so the variety of the single products we choose at home is less, and many people will go abroad to buy.

High import tax is an important reason for import restriction.

Some people say that reliance on the quality of origin and the psychology of showing wealth is the cause of people buying overseas.

I think this argument is not true. Imported consumer goods have a fixed distribution channel, and the quality of origin is not better than the quality of goods imported into China.

Many people buy high-end imports because they can increase their satisfaction and make themselves happier.

Of course, with the improvement of people's living standards, more and more people are traveling abroad. Tourism and shopping are linked together. Even if the tax on import links is lowered, some Chinese will buy abroad while traveling, but they will be greatly reduced.

The so-called reduction or liberalization of the import link tax of middle and high grade commodities is like drinking poison to cure their hunger, which is contrary to the strategy of expanding domestic demand and changing the mode of economic development.

- Liu Shangxi, deputy director of the Institute of Fiscal Science, Ministry of Finance

Consumption of more imported goods to raise the living standard of the ordinary people and improve the people's livelihood, the happiness index has been improved. This is also one of the important goals of our economic development.

Under such circumstances, it is necessary to further reduce the import tax.

Our ideas should be changed.

- Zhao Ping, deputy director of the Consumer Economics Research Institute of the Ministry of Commerce

Can overseas consumption be refunded?

Liu Shangxi: lowering taxes will stimulate foreign economies

Zhao Ping: tax reduction will attract consumption reflux

Beijing News: can we reduce or cancel part of the import tax on consumer goods and pfer these overseas purchasing power to China?

Liu Shangxi: it is wrong to expand domestic demand by lowering the tax on import links.

Imported goods come from foreign brands and are produced by overseas enterprises.

Chinese people buy foreign goods both domestically and abroad. Economically speaking, they are all the same in foreign production and foreign economies, and have no positive effect on their economy.

Some people say that because of the import link tax, the price of imported goods is higher than that of foreign countries. After the abolition of this tax, people will not buy abroad and spend money on the domestic market, which will expand domestic demand, which is wrong.

It doesn't matter where money is spent. The key is to buy what country's goods.

The expansion of domestic demand means that the expansion of domestic market and the expansion of consumer demand make domestic products less dependent on external demand. That is to say, domestic products can digest more in the domestic market, and do not rely more on external demand.

If the tax reduction of import links will impact domestic market and lead more domestic demand to foreign countries, the dependence on foreign countries will increase.

Zhao Ping: I think there will be a certain drop in the price, but it is impossible to drop the import tax and the goods will be equivalent to half off.

In the pricing process of imported consumer goods, the tax on import links is a very important aspect.

Some people say that all profits after tax reduction will be swallowed up by importers and intermediaries. This concern is reasonable, but it is not easy to form.

After the import and export tax is cut down, the importers will increase the competition, and the profits will not be reduced under the competitive environment.

For example, some brands of medium and high grade consumer goods are mass consumer goods abroad, but after entering China, they will take the high-end route. If the tax of the import links is lowered, the competitors of such brands will also come. International brands can form a competitive environment in the domestic market, and competition will return to the true colors, benefiting the common people of China.

I think that lowering taxes after import links will indeed pfer a large part of overseas purchases to China.

Many people who go shopping abroad or go shopping abroad because of price factors will reduce overseas purchases.

If we can buy similar imported consumer goods at a cheaper price in China, at least half of them will not have to go abroad to buy them.

Does it impact domestic enterprises? {page_break}

Liu Shangxi: tax reduction is nothing but a cure for poison.

Zhao Ping: there's no need to worry.

Beijing News: will liberalized import tax on high-end consumer goods seriously impact domestic enterprises?

Liu Shangxi: great risk.

The tax luxuries in the import links will not necessarily be reduced, but for the medium goods, dumping or lowering the tariff, value-added tax and consumption tax of the import links will result in dumping, because the exporting countries generally have zero tax rates on the export commodities, while the similar commodities in the country contain added value tax and consumption tax, which will cause unequal treatment on the tax revenue, which will lead to the collapse of a large number of domestic enterprises.

Lowering tariffs is a trend, but it does not mean giving up protection.

As a developing country, giving up protection means suicide.

More importantly, this will lead to the failure of policies to expand domestic demand.

Many domestic enterprises have already formed large capacity, while the products produced are not sold, while the other side brings in large quantities of imported goods and unequal competition with similar commodities in China.

Nowadays, there are more foreign goods in the society, more people buy foreign brands, which makes the insufficient domestic purchasing power and the domestic demand market more inadequate.

In this way, there are only two ways for domestic enterprises and domestic products: to seek more exports, to export to the low-end market of the world, or to die.

Therefore, the so-called reduction or liberalization of the import link tax of middle and high grade commodities is like drinking poison and quenching their hunger, which is contrary to the strategy of expanding domestic demand and changing the mode of economic development.

Zhao Ping: there's no need to worry about that.

Although opening will have some impact on the domestic market, especially in the early days of opening up, it will have a certain impact on domestic industry.

However, the practice of reform and opening up for 30 years has also proved that many industries in China are constantly enhancing their competitiveness in the process of opening up. Through the technology spillover effects of product R & D technology and management technology, domestic enterprises will grow up in continuous learning and competition.

This is particularly evident in the retail industry. It was thought that China's domestic retail industry was completely over, but in fact there existed "catfish effect" and "technology spillover effect" in the view of the 500 global giants.

It is very beneficial for the development of the whole industry to reduce the import tax revenue of medium and high grade consumer goods.

Of course, it does not exclude that the impact will be greater in some small areas or regions.

But in general, especially in the context of economic globalization, closed doors can not protect backward enterprises, and protecting backward will only make us more backward.

Protection of enterprises and improvement of people's livelihood?

Liu Shangxi: not yet open to import

Zhao Ping: improving people's livelihood and promoting employment

Beijing News: is there any contradiction between protecting domestic enterprises and improving people's living standards?

Liu Shangxi: This is not a contradiction. It is a short-term interest and a long-term interest.

Any country will protect its own economy. If the foreign market is cheap and the quality is good, it will open the door. Then the domestic enterprises will never develop.

We should pay attention to the long-term improvement of people's livelihood.

We can't just see the immediate benefits.

It can not be said that it can not be blocked, simply open it.

What are the reasons for this? Many people in China are advocating foreign goods in the way of consumption. In this case, domestic enterprises and high-end brands should not continue to develop. Now if they are open, the domestic enterprises will become weaker and the brands will not be established. Chinese goods will always become low grade goods. How can the competitiveness of the whole country come up?

At present, when China has not yet opened up consumer goods, the production capacity of domestic consumer goods has increased.

To meet people's daily life needs, the same quality of domestic products is also good.

Although China's brands are still flawed, they have made great progress, and we should continue to support them in terms of policies.

Zhao Ping: reducing import tax on middle and high grade consumer goods can improve people's livelihood and raise people's living standard so as to increase people's happiness.

Why do people nowadays feel poor sense of happiness? A very important reason is that many domestic consumer goods are more expensive than similar products abroad, and the people feel that they earn much less.

Especially imported goods such as coach and polo shirts are popular consumer goods abroad.

By reducing the import tax and reducing the wear of luxury goods to the domestic high-end consumer goods, the happiness of the people will also be improved.

After the import tax has been cut down, the importers in the domestic market will have more business and absorb more employment in China. Employment itself can create income and value added, which is conducive to stimulating the growth of GDP in China. At the same time, it also increases various business tax, personal income tax and corporate income tax.

Why are there differences?

Liu Shangxi: each station has different angles.

Zhao Ping: ideas should be changed.

Beijing News: what are the reasons for the differences between the two sides?

Liu Shangxi: the reason for the disagreement is that their positions are different, their positions are different, and their considerations are different.

In my understanding, the Ministry of Commerce has proposed that the reduction or cancellation of the import tax is mainly from the point of view of import and export trade. The Ministry of commerce is in charge of trade. After tax reduction, the scale of trade has expanded, and there may be other bases.

I don't think we can import in the name of people's livelihood. In the short term and under special circumstances, we can do that. For example, a certain commodity in China is relatively short, and it can be made up by imports, but it can not be liberalized in large areas.

Zhao Ping: the reason for this difference lies in the concept.

From the perspective of the pformation of China's economic development mode, 30 years after the reform and opening up, we reduced the import tax to the largest number of commodities. Why? Because we have always pursued the growth of GDP, and industrialization is an important development direction. Therefore, reducing the import link tax of energy, raw materials and commodities, which is conducive to the development of domestic production, so this part of the tax has undergone a significant decline after many reforms.

In the past, we didn't pay enough attention to domestic consumption, which was directly related to our long term emphasis on production and consumption, and also directly related to the rapid economic development of our country in the past 30 years.

But the goal of "12th Five-Year" is to pform the mode of economic development and establish a long-term mechanism to expand consumption. That is to say, the national strategy has actually been adjusted. The growth of GDP is no longer our only goal. Improving people's livelihood, expanding domestic demand and basing ourselves on the domestic market have become an important part of the economic development mode.

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Under such circumstances, people also need to change their ideas and consume more imported commodities, so as to raise the living standard of the ordinary people and improve the people's livelihood. The happiness index has been improved. This is also one of the important goals of our economic development.

So in this case, we need to further reduce the import tax so as to fit in with the future development goals, so our ideas should be changed.