Chevrolet new Sail was developed by Shanghai GM and SAIC. The $8,400 car is also being exported to South America.
For the second time in its history, General Motors has sold more than 2 million vehicles in China in a calendar year, reaching the milestone this week. China has been GM’s largest market for the past two years where it is the Number One automaker.
GM is on track to sell 5 million vehicles in China by 2015. And it might just be a question of time before Chinese companies mount a takeover of GM via its publicly traded stock, and move GM headquarters to Shanghai, where GM China already has substantial space in a huge office tower.
If Chinese sales more than double – and it’sa good bet - China would dominate GM’s volume in a way unheard of since GM had almost 60% share in the U.S. market in 1960.
On November 4, 2010, GM became the first global automaker in China to sell 2 million vehicles in one year. In total for 2010, GM sold more than 2.35 million vehicles in China, which represented 29% growth compared to 2009, when it was undergoing a taxpayer financed bankruptcy reorganization in the U.S.
GM – and its government mandated partners – has been the sales leader among global automakers in the Chinese market for six consecutive years. Volkswagen Group remains a distant second.
GM has 11 joint ventures, two wholly-owned foreign enterprises and more than 35,000 employees in China. Passenger cars and commercial vehicles are sold under the Baojun, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Jiefang, Opel and Wuling brands. GM’s SAIC-GM-Wuling joint venture sold its 1 millionth vehicle in China this year on 14 October.
See also:
- More Jobs to China as GM Will Develop a New Global Engine Family with SAIC and Pan Asian Technical Center
- Competition in Chinese Auto Market Results in Cross Shopping Record. U.S. Brands Suffer Because of Poor Fuel Economy
- GM and SAIC to Develop New Electric Vehicle in China with U.S. Taxpayer Supported GM’s EV Knowledge and Technology
- GM Board Meets in China. New Investment Coming Tomorrow?
- General Motors Post Q2 Earnings of $2.5 Billion. Most from N.A.
- Milestones: 20 Years of FAW-Volkswagen in China
- FAW-GM Launch Kuncheng Pickup Truck in Jilin
“This is another outstanding achievement for GM in the world’s largest vehicle market,” said Kevin Wale, president and managing director of the GM China Group.
