China Trade Information

Global automakers may be hurting from a worldwide slump in sales but in China, they see a bright beacon of hope.

GM is staring at the abyss in Detroit and is pleading for a US government bailout, but at the 6th Guangzhou International Auto Show which opened Wednesday, the US carmaker and its local joint ventures are exhibiting 24 models - with the Chevrolet Cruze, Buick Enclave and Cadillac CTS-V making their China debut.

“The vehicles on display are part of a product offensive that will see us roll out an unprecedented number of new and upgraded models over the coming two years,” GM’s China chief Kevin Wale said.

The company’s China sales grew by 10.2 percent year-on-year to 830,480 vehicles in the first nine months of this year.

Kenneth Hsu, spokesman for Ford China, said the US auto giant’s financial woes will not affect its expansion strategy in China.

“We will continue to introduce new products and invest more in China with profits from our local operations,” Hsu said.

Ford will produce its all-new Fiesta subcompact at its joint venture in Nanjing from the first quarter of 2009.

Ford’s Swedish premium brand Volvo is displaying its new long-wheelbase S80 sedan, specially designed for the Chinese market, at the annual auto show. The model will be built in China next year to compete with the Audi A6 and the BMW 5 series.

Tags: AUDI, Buick, car, car-maker, China Auto, Chrysler, Ford, GM, Volkswagen, Volvo

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