Afectación al derecho al libre mercado de la Industria Automotriz.

Abstract

The thesis analyzes how the heavy tax burden in Ecuador negatively affects the automotive industry, making vehicles more expensive and impossible to access for a significant segment of the population. Since there is no local industry, Ecuador depends on imports with additional costs. However, taxes such as VAT, tariffs, Special Consumption Tax, etc. that can double the initial price of a car constitute the greatest burden. This has led to the predominance of cheaper Chinese brands, positioning themselves with 34.9% of the market in 2023. The thesis argues that this distortion of the automotive market violates the principle of equality and free competition. The trade agreement with China could further aggravate this situation by giving advantageous conditions only to Chinese automakers. The normative analysis examines laws such as the Market Power Regulation, determining that the preferences for the Chinese market constitute unfair competition and predatory pricing. Finally, the thesis concludes that the excessive taxes in Ecuador are unjustified, reduce consumption and collection, and require reforms to maximize tax revenues without affecting economic activity, applying the Laffer principle.