According to preliminary estimates, the explosion of 2,750 tons of dangerous chemicals is equivalent to about 3,000 tons of TNT, which is about one-fifth of the power of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. It is the most serious disaster in Lebanon in peacetime. A huge red mushroom cloud was lit at the scene, and the surrounding buildings and cars were burned down, even the cars at 10 km away were overturned.

For Lebanon, this big explosion can be described as "it never rains but it pours". The COVID-19 epidemic and the Big Bang crisis have caused great economic losses and prominent social contradictions. So, what is the level of economic development in Lebanon, which is far from China, especially the development of the automobile market? Let's talk about it today

Geographically, Lebanon is located on the east coast of the Mediterranean, bordering Syria in the east and north, and Palestine and Israel in the south, with an area of about 1.400 square kilometers. Lebanon mountains runs through the north and south, with continuous valleys on both sides of the mountain range, and many rivers flow to the Mediterranean Sea. Coastal areas are plains with superior geographical location and climatic conditions.

Lebanon lies at the crossroads of Eurasia. Long-term war in history and French colony in modern times made it the most westernized country in the Middle East. 1943165438+1On October 22nd, Lebanon officially became independent, with an existing population of about 665438+ million.

After Lebanon's independence, it once enjoyed a good reputation as a financial, trade, transportation and tourism center in the Middle East. Beirut, the capital, is also called "Little Paris in the Middle East", "Pearl of the Middle East" and "Little Switzerland in the Middle East". However, the civil war that began in 1975 and lasted until 16, and the Israeli invasion in 1982, caused a lot of infrastructure damage and serious economic losses in Lebanon.

In 2008, Lebanon weathered the financial crisis smoothly and its economy grew against the trend. In 20 19, Lebanon's GDP was US$ 53.367 billion, down by 5.64% year-on-year, and its per capita GDP was US$ 7,784.32, down by US$ 240.49 compared with 20 18.

Generally speaking, Lebanon is poor in minerals and weak in industrial base, with processing industries as the mainstay, such as wood, furniture and textiles. Agriculture is underdeveloped, fruits and vegetables are the main agricultural products, food is imported, and the economy is dominated by commerce and service industry. Tourism, in particular, is the only place in the Middle East where there is no desert, relying on historical landmarks and world heritage. The climate of the Mediterranean makes the four seasons warm, and it takes only 30 minutes from the beach to the snow-capped mountains, attracting a large number of tourists to visit here.

In terms of transportation, Lebanon is dominated by sea and air transportation, and the automobile market is relatively developed. The per capita car ownership ranks among the top in the world, with the following characteristics:

First, Lebanon is highly dependent on cars.

Although Lebanon is a small country, due to its westernized lifestyle and limited public transportation, people are highly dependent on cars. According to statistics, every two and a half people in Lebanon have a car on average, and more than 60% families have family cars.

In Lebanon, the procedures of car license plate, annual inspection and driver's license application are simple and inexpensive, and there are almost no extra expenses except gasoline and insurance, such as never collecting road maintenance fees and not setting up toll stations, which is convenient for the popularization of family car consumption.

Interestingly, although the car penetration rate in Lebanon is high, the taxi price is high. The starting price in urban areas is $65,438+00, which is already one of the highest in the Middle East. Moreover, due to the small land area, traffic jams often occur during peak hours, and parking difficulties are also obvious.

Secondly, the cars in Lebanon are mainly cars, most of which are automatic gears.

There are no automobile manufacturing and assembly plants in Lebanon, which is highly open. All the cars needed are imported, most of which are cars.

Due to the mountainous terrain, poor highway grades and more uphill and downhill slopes, Lebanon has higher requirements for automobiles in terms of horsepower and braking, and four-wheel drive is also popular.

Although the cars driving on the streets of Lebanon are in poor condition, most of them are internationally renowned brands, and Kia, Hyundai, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz and BMW can be seen everywhere. Among them, Korean cars account for about 40% of the market, Japanese cars account for about 30%, European cars account for about 20%, and American cars account for about 6% of the market. In addition, cars in Lebanon are basically automatic, accounting for more than 92%, and most of the displacement is above1.8l.

Third, used cars are generally accepted by Lebanese consumers.

About 65% of private cars and 80% of buses (taxis) in Lebanon are used cars, with an average driving experience of 8- 15. Therefore, the used car market in Lebanon is booming, accounting for about 75% of its entire automobile market.

These used cars are mainly German, Japanese and French brands from Belgium, Germany and France. More than 10 used car dealers control 75% of the used car market in Lebanon. Most of them have companies in Brussels and buy them directly.

Fourth, car sales are the way of agency distribution.

Lebanon has a relatively complete and sound automobile sales network and service system, and almost all automobile brands in the world have dealers in Lebanon. According to the statistics of Lebanese Automobile Association, there are more than 40 automobile dealers in Lebanon, and the automobile loan, lease, after-sales service, insurance and spare parts supply are all perfect.

In Lebanon, banks and various financial institutions usually have various car loan packages. Generally speaking, the interest rate of new car loans is lower than that of old cars. Some car dealers directly cooperate with banks to expand sales performance. At present, most car loan application procedures can be handled by dealers, and the bank is responsible for the final review.

In addition, there is a very famous car figure in Lebanon, that is Ghosn.

20 19 The most controversial and interesting international event in the automobile industry is undoubtedly Ghosn's successful escape from Japan. After many twists and turns, Ghosn appeared in Lebanon and has been living in Beirut this year.

It is reported that Ghosn's residence is located in Ahla Faye, a wealthy area in Beirut, about 5 kilometers away from the incident port, and it was also seriously damaged in the explosion, but fortunately he and his wife were not injured in the explosion.

It seems that Ghosn escaped the Japanese trial, but failed to escape the explosion.

In recent years, Lebanon's economic situation has been continuously depressed, and public debt is high, exceeding 150% of GDP. This explosion may be the last straw to crush Lebanon. For China's own brand cars, the Lebanese market is still developing, and there is still a long way to go. Facing the complicated situation in Lebanon, we should be more cautious in entering the Lebanese automobile market.

Previously, for Lebanese consumers, automobile brands in Europe, America, Japan and South Korea were relatively familiar, while automobile brands in China were relatively unfamiliar, and there was a gap between brands and services. Therefore, it was difficult for China's own brand cars to compete with Japanese, Korean, European and American brands, especially Japanese and South Korean automobile brands.

In recent years, China's independent automobile brands have successively entered the Lebanese market, such as Chery, Geely, Chang 'an, Great Wall, Futian, Chuanqi and BAIC. And it is favored by Lebanese consumers with its brand image of good quality and low price. In just a few years, the market share of China's automobile brands has gradually expanded, but the absolute sales volume and market share are still very limited, and there is a big gap with Japan and South Korea.

Therefore, China's independent brands have a long way to go to enter the Lebanese market. Under the complicated economic situation, we must not rush forward. At this stage, agent sales are still the main choice. You can choose an agent with certain strength and pay attention to communication with the agent. * * * Make market development plans and expand market share. At the same time, only by fully learning from the successful experience of Japanese and Korean brand cars in the Lebanese market, giving full play to their respective comparative advantages, taking low-priced consumers as a breakthrough, and paying attention to brand promotion, product quality and personalization, can we have better and faster development in the Lebanese market.

This article comes from car home, the author of the car manufacturer, and does not represent car home's position.