Government vehicles auctioned online in China

A total of 109 official vehicles from China's northwest Shaanxi Province were auctioned online on Friday, provincial authorities said.

The sales marked the start of an online auction of official vehicles impounded by the central government.

A preview exhibition was held from Sunday to Wednesday in the provincial capital of Xi'an before the online auction. The auctioned vehicles include Buicks, Audis and Hondas. Starting prices for the vehicles ranged from 1,000 yuan (161 U.S. dollars) to 120,000 yuan (19,380 U.S. dollars).

The country held two earlier rounds of auctions of impounded government vehicles in February and March.

The money raised by the auctions will go to the central treasury.

According to guidelines, government vehicles may only be used for special services, such as intelligence communication and emergencies, and not regular government affairs.

The measures by the central government were introduced in 2014 and local governments have until 2015 to fully implement the orders.