According to CCTV Financial Reports, at present, the inflation rate in the United States is at a high level in four decades, and the inflation rate in Tampa, Florida, is as high as 9.6%, ranking first in the United States. When interviewed locally, the reporter found that the inflation problem has seriously dragged down the local economy, and the second-hand car industry has been particularly affected.
The reporter visited the city with the highest inflation in the United States, and the price of second-hand cars was close to that of new cars
The common sense that second-hand goods are cheaper may not work in the U.S. these days. At an established used car store in Tampa, customers found that old cars that were nearly a decade old were asking for a new car.
Daniel, a used car buyer in Tampa, USA: This car is from 2013, and the second-hand car dealer asks for $19,000 (about 120,000 yuan), plus other taxes and fees. Two or three years ago, as long as $14,000 to $15,000 (about 88,000 yuan to 95,000 yuan), the asking price is now equivalent to the price of a new car.
This phenomenon is not unique, according to the U.S. auto retail industry, used car prices have risen by more than 40% in the past year. The COVID-19 pandemic has led major U.S. car companies to reduce production, and chipmakers have tilted their resources toward electronic products such as computers and mobile phones that are suitable for working from home. When there is a significant rebound in automobile demand, chip manufacturers cannot increase production for car companies in time.
Fernando, a used car dealer in Tampa, USA: New car production is not enough, so the price of used cars has risen.
In the United States, Florida is one of the hottest used car markets because the weather is better, the roads are better, the car condition is more competitive, and many people even travel thousands of miles from other regions to buy a used car, but the rising price of the car over the past year has poured cold water on them.
Daniel, a used car buyer in Tampa, USA: Because the price of used cars in every place is high, used car dealers want to use this opportunity to make money. I drove here for four hours from Miami. For those who desperately need to buy a car, they suffer because they need to pay a lot more, about 40% more than the normal market price.
Joey, an employee of a used car trading website in Tampa, USA: Since this period of time, I can register 50 to 100 used cars a week, mainly because of supply and demand, because of the shortage of car chips and no new cars on the market.
Used car prices continue to soar, but used car dealers are mixed.
Fernando, a used car dealer in Tampa, USA: Customers do not have enough money to pay the down payment, and they need to share it through loans, so the progress of selling cars is somewhat slow. There is a car with a down payment of $10,000 (about 63,000 yuan), and everyone likes the car, but they can't afford to pay the down payment.
The United States is known as the "country on wheels", but now new cars can't wait, old cars can't afford to buy, and passengers want to accelerate, which is a problem.