--- title: "Automakers' \"60-day payment term\" implementation is difficult: 18 companies have an average cycle of 216 days, with accounts payable and notes exceeding 1 trillion yuan" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/289074447.md" description: "As of the end of the first quarter of 2026, 18 listed automotive companies had accounts payable and notes exceeding 1 trillion yuan, with an average payment period rising to 216.68 days, an increase of 27 days compared to last year. Despite the total amount decreasing, the payment period has lengthened, with only 4 companies shortening their cycles. HAIMA AUTO, ZOTYE, and SERES have the longest payment periods. Due to irregular settlement rules and cash flow pressures, automotive companies face challenges in fulfilling their commitment to a \"60-day payment period,\" and overall improvement in the industry will still take time" datetime: "2026-06-08T15:01:41.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/289074447.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/289074447.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/289074447.md) --- # Automakers' "60-day payment term" implementation is difficult: 18 companies have an average cycle of 216 days, with accounts payable and notes exceeding 1 trillion yuan As of the end of the first quarter of 2026, the total accounts payable and notes payable of 18 listed car companies primarily engaged in passenger vehicles reached CNY 1,034.407 billion, maintaining a scale above one trillion yuan. However, the industry average payment turnover days rose to 216.68 days, an increase of 27 days compared to the end of last year, showing a divergence of total amount decreasing and payment terms lengthening. In this statistics, only 4 companies shortened their payment terms, while more than half of the companies extended their payment cycles, with Haima Auto, ZOTYE, and SERES having the longest payment terms in the industry. The commitment to a 60-day payment term is difficult to implement. On one hand, there are issues such as irregular settlement rules and unreasonable additional clauses; on the other hand, some car companies are under cash flow pressure, making it difficult for their cash on hand to cover payables, with fund management and internal coordination becoming major obstacles. Currently, several car companies have introduced measures such as process optimization and the establishment of special funds to improve payment terms, but based on the first quarter data, the entire industry still faces significant challenges in fully achieving the 60-day payment term goal. With May coming to an end, the first quarter financial reports of mainstream listed car companies in China have all been disclosed, and the commitment to compress payment terms to within 60 days is undergoing a new round of scrutiny. After sorting through the financial reports of the 18 listed car companies (all of which have passenger vehicle businesses), a reporter from the Daily Economic News found that as of the end of the first quarter of this year, the total accounts payable and notes payable of these 18 listed car companies amounted to CNY 1,034.407 billion, a decrease of CNY 87.548 billion compared to the end of the second quarter of last year (the starting point for the first complete execution quarter after the commitment of 17 companies was the third quarter of last year, so a comparison with the end of the second quarter is made). However, the average turnover days rose to 216.68 days, an increase of 27 days compared to the end of last year, showing a divergence of "total amount decreasing, payment terms lengthening." Looking at individual companies, SAIC Motor Corporation, BYD, and Chery Automobile rank in the top three for accounts payable and notes payable amounts. Data shows that as of the end of the first quarter of this year, the accounts payable and notes payable amounts for these three companies were CNY 251.114 billion, CNY 212.932 billion, and CNY 128.678 billion, respectively, all exceeding the CNY 100 billion mark; when measured by corresponding turnover days, Haima Auto, ZOTYE, and SERES have the longest payment terms. **Only 4 companies reduced their accounts payable and notes payable turnover days** As of the first quarter of this year, 7 companies had reduced their accounts payable and notes payable amounts compared to the end of the second quarter of last year. Among them, BYD and Li Auto reduced by CNY 23.754 billion and CNY 13.991 billion, respectively. Table compiled by: Daily Economic News reporter Sun Lei Chery Automobile, SAIC Motor Corporation, and Nio saw increases in their accounts payable and notes payable as of the first quarter compared to the end of the second quarter of last year. Among them, SAIC Motor Corporation increased by CNY 20.561 billion over three quarters, an increase of 8.92%; Chery Automobile increased by CNY 22.364 billion over three quarters, an increase of 21.04%; Nio increased by CNY 19.019 billion over three quarters, an increase of 54.42%. Analysts say that with the growth in sales, SAIC Motor Corporation and Chery Automobile have correspondingly expanded their procurement scale from upstream suppliers, leading to an increase in accounts payable and notes payable. At the same time, with the increase in delivery volume, Nio's bargaining power in the supply chain has improved, allowing it to more effectively utilize suppliers' financial support, thereby increasing the scale of accounts payable and notes payable From the perspective of corresponding turnover days, as of the end of the first quarter of this year, only 4 companies have improved compared to the end of the second quarter of last year, namely Geely Auto, Li Auto, GAC Group, and BAIC Blue Valley. Among them, Li Auto's accounts payable and notes turnover days are 162.69 days, shortened by about 45 days compared to the end of the second quarter of last year, making it the company with the largest reduction in payment terms. Table prepared by: Every Day Reporter Sun Lei Excluding the companies that could not be statistically accounted for, the accounts payable and notes turnover days of other companies are still increasing. As of the end of the first quarter of this year, Haima Auto and ZOTYE's accounts payable and notes turnover days were approximately 480 days and 461 days, respectively, an increase of about 229 days and 132 days compared to the end of the second quarter of last year; XPeng increased by 125 days compared to the end of the second quarter of last year; SERES increased by nearly 70 days to around 337 days. Accounts payable and notes turnover days, also known as average payment period, are not entirely equivalent to the payment cycle that companies provide to suppliers, but they are also an indicator of how long it takes for a company to settle its debts to suppliers. Zhang Na, an analyst of new energy vehicles at Wenkang Securities, stated that in the first quarter, due to seasonal effects, the turnover days in the automotive industry slightly rebounded to 80 to 130 days, which is a normal seasonal disturbance. **Some companies' measures to optimize payment terms have entered the implementation stage** After excluding seasonal fluctuations in the first quarter, the comparison of accounts payable and notes turnover days at the end of last year and mid-year clearly reflects that some companies' measures to optimize payment terms have entered the implementation stage. In terms of this indicator, only a minority of companies saw an increase in turnover days compared to the end of the second quarter of last year, while most companies experienced a reduction in this turnover period. It is worth mentioning that some companies have explicitly stated in their financial reports that they have taken corresponding measures to shorten accounts payable and notes turnover days. For example, BYD mentioned in its 2025 annual report that its accounts payable and notes turnover days are at a relatively low level in the automotive industry and continue to improve, and that this reporting period has further shortened compared to the same period in 2024. In February of this year, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) released a research report on the implementation of key automotive companies' commitments regarding supplier payment terms, indicating that since 17 automotive companies committed to keeping payment terms to suppliers within 60 days, the vast majority of key automotive companies have compressed payment terms to within 60 days, with an average payment term of about 54 days (shortened by about 10 days compared to the same period last year); there are 4 companies with average payment terms below 50 days, and this improvement is mainly concentrated in the second half of 2025. CAAM stated in the research report that all 17 automotive companies surveyed attach great importance to the implementation of payment term commitments, with many companies establishing special working groups to promote this, issuing specific institutional documents, establishing a long-term mechanism for commitment implementation, and completing payment term adjustments, including existing contracts. "Some companies further optimize financial processes and improve information systems to achieve regular automatic payments, reducing delays caused by human operations; some companies have changed the starting date from the account date to the delivery acceptance date, and the settlement frequency from monthly to bi-weekly, optimizing processes to enhance settlement efficiency. Many companies are preparing special funds exceeding 10 billion to improve payment terms." CAAM added According to Yan Jinghui, a member of the Expert Committee of the China Automobile Circulation Association, the payment terms are an important condition affecting the healthy cycle of the automotive industry and are also a fundamental condition for the healthy and standardized development of the industry. Currently, a series of requirements and measures targeting improper competition in the automotive industry, such as payment terms for car companies, have already produced certain effects. **60-Day Payment Term Commitment: A Tough Cash Battle** However, from the financial reports up to the first quarter of this year, some car companies still have issues regarding payment terms. The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) mentioned in a survey released in February this year that some car companies still have problems with supplier payments that need to be continuously addressed. "The starting point for payment terms involves different methods such as delivery acceptance, centralized reconciliation, invoice receipt, and loading verification. Although nominally all have a 60-day payment term, the time difference for suppliers from delivery to receiving payment varies greatly, and the process management is not standardized enough, leading to disguised extensions of payment terms. A few companies require suppliers to lower product prices or accept other unreasonable terms under the pretext of shortening payment terms," stated the CAAM. Cui Dongshu, Secretary-General of the Passenger Car Association, said: "The biggest obstacle to implementing the 60-day payment term may lie in the financial management capabilities and internal coordination mechanisms of some car companies. For example, how to adjust cash flow in a short period to ensure timely payments to suppliers is a significant challenge. Additionally, coordination among the finance, procurement, and production departments within car companies needs to be further strengthened to ensure timely allocation and payment of funds." Regarding car companies that have not yet fulfilled their commitment to the "60-day payment term," Wang Peng, an associate researcher at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, also believes: "Car companies are under pressure on cash flow and have to prioritize the stability of their own capital chain, thereby delaying payments." This also indicates that shortening payment terms is primarily a "cash battle." Whether the cash on hand can fully cover accounts payable and notes payable is the critical line for whether the "60-day settlement" commitment can truly be realized. From the perspective of cash and cash equivalents, among the car companies surveyed by reporters, only SERES, Li Auto, GAC Group, and HAIMA AUTO have cash on hand that can fully cover accounts payable and notes payable. If restricted cash, short-term investments, and time deposits are included in the "cash reserves" statistics, the cash reserves of companies like XPeng can fully cover their accounts payable and notes payable. Table compiled by: Every Day Reporter Sun Lei However, even when estimated by cash reserve scale, some car companies still cannot fully cover accounts payable and notes payable. For example, the reserve scale of SAIC Group, BYD, and Chery Automobile is still lower than their corresponding accounts payable and notes payable, putting pressure on short-term solvency. 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