The State Council Issued an Action Plan to Promote Large-Scale Equipment Upgrades and Trade-In Programs for Consumer Goods

On March 13, the State Council issued the "Action Plan for Promoting Large-Scale Equipment Renewal and Consumer Goods Trade-in Program," outlining objectives and specifying 20 key tasks in five areas.

Action Plan for Promoting Large-Scale Equipment Renewal and Consumer Goods Trade-in Program

Promoting large-scale equipment renewal and consumer goods trade-in programs is an important measure to accelerate the construction of a new development pattern and promote high-quality development. It will effectively boost investment and consumption, benefiting both the present and the long term. To implement the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee, the following action plan is formulated to promote a new round of large-scale equipment renewal and consumer goods trade-in programs.

I. General Requirements

To promote large-scale equipment upgrades and the trade-in of old consumer goods, we must be guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, thoroughly implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, and implement the deployments of the Central Economic Work Conference and the Fourth Meeting of the Central Financial and Economic Affairs Commission. We must coordinate the expansion of domestic demand and the deepening of supply-side structural reform, implement four major actions: equipment upgrades, trade-in of old consumer goods, recycling and reuse, and standard upgrading. We must vigorously promote the production and application of advanced equipment, continuously increase the proportion of advanced production capacity, promote the entry of more high-quality durable consumer goods into residents' lives, smooth the resource recycling chain, and significantly improve the quality and level of the national economic cycle.

—Adhere to market-oriented, government-guided approach. Give full play to the decisive role of the market in resource allocation, and rely on the market to provide diversified supply and services based on the differentiated needs of various equipment and consumer goods upgrades. Better leverage the government's role, increase policy support in finance, taxation, and investment, implement a comprehensive policy package, guide businesses to appropriately reduce prices, and create a scale effect for upgrades.

—Adhere to encouraging advanced and eliminating outdated practices. Establish a long-term mechanism combining incentives and constraints, accelerate the elimination of outdated products and equipment, improve safety and reliability, and promote the high-end, intelligent, and green development of industries. Accelerate the construction of a unified national market and eliminate local protectionism.

—Adhere to standards-led and orderly improvement. Benchmark against international best practices and, in conjunction with the actual development of industries, accelerate the formulation and revision of standards in areas such as energy conservation, carbon reduction, environmental protection, safety, and recycling. Take into account the affordability of enterprises and the acceptance by consumers, and promote the orderly implementation of standards. By 2027, equipment investment in industries such as industry, agriculture, construction, transportation, education, culture and tourism, and healthcare will increase by more than 25% compared to 2023; the energy efficiency of major energy-consuming equipment in key industries will basically reach energy-saving levels, the proportion of production capacity achieving A-level environmental performance will significantly increase, and the penetration rate of digital R&D design tools and the CNC rate of key processes in large-scale industrial enterprises will exceed 90% and 75%, respectively; the amount of scrapped vehicles recycled will increase by approximately 100% compared to 2023, the volume of used car transactions will increase by 45% compared to 2023, the amount of waste household appliances recycled will increase by 30% compared to 2023, and the proportion of recycled materials in resource supply will further increase.

II. Implement Equipment Renewal Action

(I) Promote Equipment Renewal and Transformation in Key Industries To advance new industrialization, with energy conservation and carbon reduction, ultra-low emissions, safe production, digital transformation, and intelligent upgrading as key directions, we will focus on key industries such as steel, non-ferrous metals, petrochemicals, chemicals, building materials, power, machinery, aviation, shipbuilding, light textiles, and electronics, vigorously promoting the upgrading and technological transformation of production equipment, energy-consuming equipment, and power transmission and distribution equipment. We will accelerate the promotion of energy-consuming equipment that achieves advanced energy efficiency and energy-saving levels, implementing energy conservation and carbon reduction transformations by industry and sector. We will promote the application of intelligent manufacturing equipment and software, accelerate the construction and widespread application of the industrial internet, and cultivate new models of digital economy empowerment. We will strictly implement mandatory standards for energy consumption, emissions, and safety, as well as the requirements of equipment elimination catalogs, eliminating substandard equipment according to laws and regulations.

(II) Accelerate equipment upgrading in the construction and municipal infrastructure sector. To advance new urbanization, and in conjunction with urban renewal and renovation of old residential areas, we will focus on residential elevators, water supply, heating, gas supply, sewage treatment, sanitation, urban lifeline projects, and security, promoting upgrading and transformation in a categorized manner. We will accelerate the upgrading of old residential elevators that do not meet current product standards and pose high safety risks. Upgrade and renovate waterworks and pressurized water supply facilities and equipment in various regions. Promote the orderly transformation of heating metering systems and continuously upgrade heating facilities and equipment. Focus on exterior wall insulation, doors and windows, and heating devices to promote energy-saving renovations of existing buildings. Continue to implement the renovation and upgrading of aging gas pipelines. Accelerate the improvement and strengthening of urban sewage and garbage treatment facilities and equipment. Promote the construction of IoT-enabled intelligent sensing equipment for urban lifeline projects such as underground pipe networks, bridges, tunnels, and manhole covers. Accelerate the upgrading of security equipment such as video surveillance in key public areas and roads.

(III) Support the upgrading of transportation equipment and aging agricultural machinery. Continue to promote the electrification of urban buses and support the upgrading of aging new energy buses and power batteries. Accelerate the elimination of diesel trucks with emission standards of National III and below. Strengthen the industrialization capacity of green aviation equipment such as electric and hydrogen energy. Accelerate the scrapping and replacement of old, high-energy-consuming and high-emission ships, vigorously support the development of new energy-powered ships, improve the supporting infrastructure and standards for new energy-powered ships, and gradually expand the application scope of new energy ships such as electric, liquefied natural gas-powered, biodiesel-powered, and green methanol-powered ships. Continue to effectively implement the agricultural machinery scrapping and replacement subsidy policy, and, in conjunction with the needs of agricultural production and the stage of agricultural mechanization development, solidly promote the scrapping and replacement of old agricultural machinery, and accelerate the structural adjustment of agricultural machinery.

(IV) Improve the level of educational, cultural, tourism, and medical equipment. Promote the upgrading and replacement of advanced teaching and research equipment in eligible universities and vocational colleges (including technical schools) to improve their teaching and research levels. Strictly implement the standards for the configuration of subject teaching equipment, ensuring the quality and quantity of teaching instruments and equipment and updating them in a timely manner. Promote the upgrading and improvement of cultural and tourism equipment such as cable cars, amusement equipment, and performance equipment. Strengthen the construction of a high-quality and efficient medical and health service system, promote the iterative upgrading of equipment and information facilities in medical and health institutions, and encourage qualified medical institutions to accelerate the upgrading and transformation of medical equipment such as medical imaging, radiotherapy, remote diagnosis and treatment, and surgical robots. Promote the renovation and upgrading of hospital wards, and address the shortcomings in ward environment and facilities. 

III. Implementing the Consumer Goods Trade-in Program

(V) Car Trade-in Program. Increase policy support, remove bottlenecks in the circulation process, and promote tiered and replacement consumption of automobiles. Organize nationwide car trade-in promotional activities, encourage automobile manufacturers and sales companies to conduct promotional activities, and guide orderly competition within the industry. Strictly enforce the mandatory scrapping standards for motor vehicles and vehicle safety and environmental protection inspection standards, and eliminate old vehicles that meet the mandatory scrapping standards in accordance with laws and regulations. Optimize car purchase restriction measures according to local conditions and promote the construction of an information exchange system for the full life cycle management of automobile use.

(VI) Home Appliance Trade-in Program. Focus on improving convenience and streamline the home appliance replacement consumption chain. Support home appliance sales companies in collaborating with manufacturers and recycling companies to conduct trade-in promotional activities, establish online and offline home appliance trade-in zones, and provide preferential treatment to consumers who trade in old home appliances for energy-saving home appliances. Encourage eligible localities to provide subsidies to consumers who purchase green and intelligent home appliances. Accelerate the implementation of the home appliance after-sales service improvement action.

(VII) Promoting the Replacement of Home Decoration Consumer Goods. Through government support and corporate concessions, support residents in renovating old houses and making partial renovations to kitchens and bathrooms, continuously promote home-based aging-in-place renovations, and actively cultivate new consumption patterns such as smart homes. Promote home decoration model rooms in shopping malls, communities, and online platforms, and encourage enterprises to create online model rooms, providing affordable products and services to meet diverse consumer needs.

IV. Implement Recycling and Reuse Actions

(VIII) Improve the Recycling Network for Used Products and Equipment. Accelerate the development of the "trade-in + recycling" logistics system and new models, support durable consumer goods manufacturers and retailers in building reverse logistics systems or cooperating with professional recycling companies to collect used consumer goods door-to-door. Further improve the recycling network for renewable resources and support the construction of a number of centralized sorting and processing centers. Optimize the layout of scrapped car recycling and dismantling enterprises and promote door-to-door vehicle pickup services. Improve the recycling channels for office equipment in public institutions. Support the development of online trading platforms for used products and equipment.

(IX) Support the Circulation and Trading of Second-hand Goods. Continuously optimize the registration and management of second-hand car transactions to facilitate transactions. Vigorously develop the export business of second-hand cars. Promote the standardization of second-hand electronic product transactions and prevent the leakage and malicious recovery of user information. Encourage second-hand goods trading platform enterprises to establish and improve evaluation mechanisms for distributors and users within their platforms, and strengthen information sharing on credit records and illegal/dishonest behavior. Support electronic product manufacturers in developing second-hand trading, refurbishment, and repair businesses.

(X) Orderly Promote Remanufacturing and Cascaded Utilization. Encourage the remanufacturing of qualified waste production equipment; the quality characteristics and safety and environmental performance of remanufactured products should be no less than those of the original new products. Promote the application of technologies such as non-destructive testing, additive manufacturing, and flexible processing to improve remanufacturing processing levels. Deepen the remanufacturing of traditional equipment such as auto parts, construction machinery, and machine tools, and explore the development of high-end equipment remanufacturing businesses in emerging fields such as wind power, photovoltaics, and aviation. Accelerate the research and development of residual life assessment technologies for wind power, photovoltaics, and power batteries, and orderly promote the cascaded utilization of product equipment and key components.

(XI) Promote High-Level Resource Recycling. Promote the clustered and large-scale development of renewable resource processing and utilization enterprises, and guide the gradual withdrawal of inefficient production capacity. Improve support policies for the treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), and study expanding the coverage of WEEE treatment regulations. Support the construction of a number of industrial clusters for the intensive processing of recycled resources such as waste steel, waste non-ferrous metals, and waste plastics. Actively and orderly develop biomass liquid fuels using waste oils and non-grain biomass as main raw materials. Explore the construction of an information-based traceability system for the use of recycled materials such as recycled plastics and recycled metals that meets international standards. Continuously improve the utilization technology level of waste non-ferrous metals and strengthen the research and application of rare and precious metal extraction technologies. Timely improve import standards and policies for retired power batteries and recycled materials.

V. Implement Standards Improvement Action

(XII) Accelerate the improvement of energy consumption, emission, and technical standards. Benchmark against international advanced levels, accelerate the formulation and revision of a number of mandatory national standards for energy consumption limits and product and equipment energy efficiency, dynamically update the advanced energy efficiency level, energy-saving level, and access level of key energy-consuming products and equipment, and accelerate the improvement of energy-saving indicators and market access thresholds. Accelerate the upgrading of relevant restriction standards for energy consumption values of passenger cars and heavy commercial vehicles. Accelerate the improvement of emission standards for key industries and optimize and improve the emission control level of air and water pollutants. Revise and improve the clean production evaluation indicator system, and formulate and revise carbon emission accounting standards for key industry enterprises. Improve standards for the upgrading and decommissioning of wind turbines, photovoltaic equipment, and related products.

(XIII) Strengthen the improvement of product technical standards. Focusing on major consumer goods such as automobiles, home appliances, home furnishing products, consumer electronics, and civilian drones, accelerate the upgrading of standards in safety, health, performance, environmental protection, and testing. Accelerate the improvement of the quality and safety standard system for home appliances, and vigorously popularize knowledge on the safe service life and energy conservation of home appliances. Accelerate the upgrading of consumer product quality standards, formulate a consumer product quality and safety supervision catalog, and strictly supervise quality and safety. Improve the carbon label and other standard systems, and give full play to the leading role of standards, green certification, and high-end certification.

(XIV) Strengthen the supply of standards for resource recycling. Improve green design standards for materials and components that are easy to recycle, disassemble, regenerate, and remanufacture. Formulate and revise standards for the recycling of renewable resources, such as the recycling specifications for waste electrical and electronic products. Issue national standards for methods of information erasure in the second-hand transactions of electronic products such as mobile phones and tablets, guide second-hand electronic product distributors to establish information security management systems and information technology service management systems, and study and formulate grading standards for the usability of second-hand electronic products. (XV) Strengthen the alignment of domestic and international standards in key areas. Establish and improve a mechanism for tracking and converting international standards to international standards, conduct comparative analysis of Chinese standards with relevant international standards, convert a number of advanced and applicable international standards, and continuously improve the conversion rate of international standards. Support domestic institutions in actively participating in the formulation and revision of international standards, and support the internationalization of standards in key industries such as new energy vehicles. Strengthen the alignment of domestic and international standards in quality standards, inspection and quarantine, certification and accreditation.

VI. Strengthen Policy Guarantees

(XVI) Increase fiscal policy support. Include eligible equipment renewal and recycling projects in the scope of central budget investment and other funding support. Adhere to the joint support of central and local governments for the replacement of old consumer goods with new ones, and support eligible automobile replacements through central government-allocated energy conservation and emission reduction subsidies; encourage eligible localities to make overall use of central government-allocated funds related to the modern commercial and trade circulation system to support the replacement of old consumer goods in the home appliance and other fields. Continue to implement the subsidy for the renewal of old operating vehicles and vessels to support the renewal of old ships and diesel trucks. Encourage eligible localities to make overall use of central government-allocated urban transportation development reward funds to support the renewal of new energy buses and batteries. Make full use of the agricultural machinery scrapping and replacement subsidy policy. The central government will establish a special fund to support the recycling and disposal of waste electrical and electronic products. Further improve the government's green procurement policy and increase the procurement of green products. Strictly enforce financial discipline, strengthen the full-process, full-chain, and all-round supervision of fiscal funds, and improve the effectiveness and accuracy of fiscal fund use.

(XVII) Improve tax support policies. Increase tax incentives for energy-saving, water-saving, environmental protection, and safe production equipment, and include digital and intelligent transformation within the scope of incentives. Promote the practice of resource recycling enterprises issuing "reverse invoices" to natural persons who sell scrapped products. In conjunction with the simplified VAT collection policy for renewable resource recycling enterprises, study and improve supporting measures for income tax collection and management, and optimize tax collection standards and methods.

(XVIII) Optimize financial support. Utilize the relending policy tool to guide financial institutions to strengthen support for equipment renewal and technological transformation; the central government will provide certain interest subsidies for bank loans that meet the relending reimbursement conditions. Give full play to the role of the working mechanism for expanding medium- and long-term loan issuance to the manufacturing industry. Guide banking institutions to reasonably increase green credit and strengthen financial support for the production, service, and consumption of green and intelligent home appliances. Banks are encouraged to appropriately reduce down payment ratios for passenger vehicle loans and reasonably determine loan terms and credit limits, provided that they comply with laws and regulations and risks are controllable.

(XIX) Strengthening Factor Guarantees. Strengthen the guarantee of factors such as land and energy for enterprise technological upgrading projects. Simplify preliminary approval procedures for technological upgrading projects that do not require new land use and are mainly focused on equipment upgrades. Coordinate the construction of facilities for the classification, collection, transfer, storage, and recycling of household waste within the region, and include them in the scope of public infrastructure land use to ensure reasonable land use needs.

(XX) Strengthening Innovation Support. Focus on the long-standing bottlenecks in industrial foundations and major technological equipment that have hindered the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, and actively carry out technological research on major technological equipment. Improve mechanisms such as "open competition," "horse race," and innovative product iteration, and strengthen the system.