A Study On The Influencing Factors Of Chinese Residents' Demand For Private Cars

In recent years,private cars was in explosive growth trend in China and the penetration rate has risen rapidly.While the household consumption rate is in sustained downturn,so this phenomenon is very worthy of academic further research.According to China's reality,the paper is based on the perspective of status seeking.Using the China Household Finance Survey(CHFS)in 2011 and 2013 to obtain micro family data,the paper creates a micro panel and studies the influencing factors of household making decision to purchase cars.By comparing the 2011 and 2013 two sections' cross-section data,the paper also gives the factors which influence the expenses of household purchasing cars.Therefore it is beneficial for us to study the relationship between the influencing factors of Chinese households' demand for private cars and the hidden driving factors behind the status seeking.Whether the rapid growth of private car demand is related to status comparison.To a certain extent,whether the expansion of the income gap strengthens the residents pursuit of the status comparison.Thus the inner hidden relationship promotes the surge demand in purchasing cars in China.This is the core content of the paper to be mainly studied.The paper finds:(1)On a national scale,Chinese residents have significant status characteristics in the decision-making and expense of purchasing private cars.It also explains the rapid growth of demand in purchasing private cars is related to residents' status comparison motivation;(2)The expansion of the income gap will further strengthen the motivation of the family status seeking.In making decision to purchasing private cars,the effect of income gap strengthening status comparison is more obvious for middle and high income groups.In terms of car spending,the widening income gap will further raise the level of household purchasing cars.Meanwhile the effect of the income gap on the residents motivation of status seeking is gradually increasing;(3)Housing has a significant wealth effect on household private cars demand,and it exists differences for middle-low income families and middle-high income families;(4)The impact of the amount cars on the demand of private cars is different among cars purchasing decision-making,cars spending and different income groups;(5)The control variables of the per capita income of households,family wealth,family population,householder age,householder education level also have a significant impact on the residents demand for private cars.At last,the paper puts forward the policies and recommendations from the following perspectives: guiding people to establish the scientific and rational consumption views,adjusting the structure of income distribution,reasonably regulating the income gap,improving the social security system.