Chevrolet Malibu and Buick Encore are among the new offerings from GM in China.
In the closely watched sales race in China, the world’s largest car market by far, the reigning champion GM held off its strongest contender, the VW Group, for the Number One position through May. According to Volkswagen Group sales figures just released this morning in Wolfsburg, its Asia Pacific region through May delivered 1.43 million vehicles (+16.4%), of which 1.28 million (+18.2%) were delivered in China, the Group’s largest single market.
For GM, struggling in Europe and recording below average gains in the recovering U.S. auto market, the VW Group China results were welcome news. For the first five months of 2013, GM and its joint ventures sold a record 1,331,185 vehicles in China, an increase of 10.6% year-on-year. Shanghai GM’s sales in China rose 17.1% to 620,968 units, SAIC-GM-Wuling’s domestic sales grew 5.8% to 682,354 units and FAW-GM’s China sales were up 2.2% to 26,380 vehicles.
One interesting trend emerging is Porsche’s phenomenal success in China. Porsche, which became a Volkswagen Group brand on 1 August 2012, delivered 67,300 vehicles in the first five months. Demand for models built by the Stuttgart-based carmaker was especially high in the Asia-Pacific region, where 20,000 vehicles were delivered, of which 15,038 were in China. In the North America region, where 19,400 models (17,609 in the U.S.) were handed over to customers.
GM and its joint ventures still offer the broadest lineup of vehicles and brands among automakers in China. Passenger cars and commercial vehicles are selling under the Baojun, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Jiefang, Opel and Wuling brands. In 2012, GM sold more than 2.8 million vehicles in China. It has been the sales leader among global automakers in the market for eight consecutive years, but is being pressed by the Volkswagen Group, which is now a close second. The race is far from over.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, publisher (kzhw@aol.com), is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
Zino is at home on test tracks, knows his way around U.S. Congressional hearing rooms, auto company headquarters, plant floors, as well as industry research and development labs where the real mobility work is done. He can quote from court decisions, refer to instrumented road tests, analyze financial results, and profile executive personalities and corporate cultures.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
