Eight thousand cars are being shipped to Tianjin Port in three ships from Dubai under a "parallel-import" scheme that allows auto dealers to purchase vehicles directly in foreign markets and then sell them to customers in China.

The prices of the cars, mainly premium brands, are about 15 percent lower than the price at a dealer authorized by the automaker.

The last shipment of cars will arrive around June 21 and are expected to move the needle in the domestic market.

In May, retail car sales in China hit 10,830 units, up 18 percent year-on-year.

During the first five months of this year, Tianjin's imported cars under the parallel-import scheme hit 19,800 units, with a total imported value of 7.47 billion yuan ($1.05 billion). They account for 60 percent of the country's total imported cars.

Market insiders said the sales surge is partly due to the country's announcement that it would postpone the launch another round of auto emission standards — a move tied to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic —thereby helping move the previous inventory under the lower threshold of environmental protection standards. Other incentives aimed at boosting consumers spending and stimulating the market have also contributed to the surge.

This month the total number of vehicles imported under the parallel-import scheme to the Tianjin Port Free Trade Zone will hit 10,000 units.

The cars were manufactured in the Middle East and shipped from Dubai.