Is the gasoline export price only 1.8 yuan per liter? The analysis is reasonable: duty-free processing of imported materials

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According to a recent report in the Fuzhou Daily, a Chinese-flagged oil tanker named “Changhang Development” transported a shipment of 38,000 tons of gasoline, worth 14.44 million US dollars, from Qinglanshan Terminal in the Xiaocuo Port area to Singapore. These are the first batch of refined oil products exported by Sinochem Quanzhou Petrochemical Co., Ltd. since its commissioning in April 2014, marking the successful completion of the company’s first batch of processed oil product trade operations under the processing trade model. This is also the first time that refined oil has been exported from Fujian ports in 8 years. 　　Some netizens have calculated that one ton of gasoline is equivalent to 1,335 liters, and one US dollar is worth 6.5219 RMB. The calculation is: 1444 divided by 3.8 multiplied by 6.5219 divided by 1335 = 1.856 yuan! During the same period, taking the Beijing area as an example, gasoline with octane number 92 was priced at 5.67 yuan per liter. 　　Such a large price difference sparked debate and criticism: Why are the oil prices for Chinese people so high? Call on the National Development and Reform Commission to speak up! 　　However, upon closer inspection of the details, it can be seen that this actually falls under the category of processed oil import trade. 　　In fact, the business of processing imported materials for re-export provides domestic refineries with \"two markets and two options,\" expanding their sales channels and helping to achieve better sales results for their products. 　　There are three types of trade methods for imported crude oil: general trade, processing with imported materials, and processing with supplied materials. General trade refers to the mode of import and export trade that involves unilateral entry into a customs territory or unilateral exit from it. Processing with imported materials falls under processing trade; it involves domestic enterprises purchasing raw materials from abroad, processing them into finished products within the country, and then exporting those products. The ownership of both the raw materials and the finished products remains with the domestic enterprises. Processing under order falls under the category of processing trade: raw materials are provided free of charge by an overseas party, which are then processed into finished products in China before being sent back overseas. The ownership of both the raw materials and the finished products belongs to the overseas company, while the domestic processing enterprise earns only a processing fee. 　　Under the current tax policies, in the case of processing trade with imported materials, the customs exempts the value of these imported materials from taxes. When the goods are exported, value-added tax and consumption tax are not imposed. Moreover, the processing fees paid by the processing enterprises are also exempt from value-added tax and consumption tax, giving them a cost advantage. 　　In other words, the refined oil exported by Sinochem this time was produced under a processing-on-commission basis; since the customs exempts goods from such processing-on-commission trade from value-added tax and consumption tax, the price is low. In the news, it is mentioned that the 92-octane gasoline amounts to 38,000 tons with a value of $14.44 million; this $14.44 million figure represents the amount after deducting value-added tax and consumption tax. Based on the current market price minus consumption tax and value-added tax, this price is at a reasonable level. 　　In addition, Sohu Finance interviewed Xue Qun, an analyst at Longzhong Petrochemical Network, regarding this issue. According to Xue Qun’s calculations, using the RMB exchange rate of 6.4746 on December 23rd, the price per ton of 92# gasoline exported by Sinochem Quanzhou is 2,460 RMB, which translates to 1.8 RMB per liter! By the end of December, the mainstream wholesale price of domestic 92# gasoline was 5,300–5,500 yuan per ton, while the retail price was 5.6–5.7 yuan per liter. 　　Xue Qun explained that currently, the prices of refined oil products in China are all tax-inclusive, including value-added tax, consumption tax, urban construction tax, and education surcharge; the total tax burden amounts to 3,100–3,300 yuan per ton. In the case of export trade involving processed refined oil products, no consumption tax is levied, and value-added tax can be refunded or exempted. Based on the market price of National V 92# gasoline at the end of December, which was 5,300–5,500 yuan per ton, the price after deducting taxes and fees is approximately 2,300 yuan per ton. From this perspective, an export price of 2,460 yuan per unit for this batch of National V 92# gasoline falls within a reasonable range.