China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is preparing to introduce a ban on the resale of vehicles within six months of their initial registration, in a move aimed at clamping down on the widespread sale of so-called zero-mileage used cars.

The development was revealed in an editorial by Auto Review, a publication affiliated with the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, on its official WeChat platform.

Zero-mileage cars, though technically used, are often brand-new vehicles that have been registered and insured sometimes without ever reaching the customer.

The practice has proliferated in recent years as carmakers and dealers attempt to meet aggressive sales quotas in a saturated market plagued by excess production and a prolonged price war.

The editorial noted that this workaround has allowed automakers to inflate sales figures while passing complications onto consumers, such as warranty and resale issues.

To curb the trend, the China Automobile Dealers Association has also proposed a new tracking system for used car exports, adding pressure for regulatory reform.

Leading domestic brands, including BYD and Chery, are reportedly moving to tighten oversight, warning dealers against prematurely licensing vehicles before they are actually sold to customers.

These internal measures appear to align with broader signals from the central government, which has pledged to rein in “irrational” competition in the auto sector.

The issue drew national attention in May after Great Wall Motor CEO Wei Jianjun publicly criticized the practice. Since then, state media outlets have echoed those concerns, and the State Council has vowed to take action to restore order in the market.

If implemented, the proposed restrictions would represent the first official intervention aimed at dismantling the zero-mileage workaround, a tactic that has come to symbolize deeper distortions within China's automotive industry.