Short news automotive
June 27, 2013 Category Automotive Metals & Minerals, Short news automotive
- Partnering with the event’s organizing committee, Volvo was the exclusive provider of VIP transportation for the Fortune Global Forum in Chengdu in May. The company also co-hosted a roundtable discussion titled “the Future of Transportation”. Volvo Chairman Li Shufu represented the company at major activities of the forum. Volvo’s factory in Chengdu will become operational later this year. Hakan Samuelsson, President and CEO of Volvo Car Group, said now is a time of rapid development for Volvo in the domestic market.
- In the first five months of this year, Volvo’s sales in China totaled 22,905 units, up 26.9% annually, despite the sluggish market. In May alone, it sold 4,415 units, up 24.4% annually, making China its largest market worldwide. Volvo plans to introduce six new models to China to further enrich its portfolio. On June 5, Volvo unveiled the 2014 S80L, an executive luxury sedan.
- Great Wall Motors defied the industry slowdown last year, as it sold 620,000 vehicles in 2012, up 28% year-on-year, higher than the industry average increase of 4.3%. Its share price jumped 103% on the Shanghai bourse in 2012, marking the largest increase among China’s publicly held car makers.
- Volkswagen and its Chinese partner SAIC Group signed an agreement to enhance their strategic cooperation, expand capacity at their Foshan factory in Guangdong province, which will start production this year, and set up a new plant in Changsha, Hunan province. The deal was signed during Premier Li Keqiang’s three-day official visit to Germany. The agreement is part of the German automaker’s plan to invest €9.8 billion in China by 2015. Volkswagen plans to establish seven new plants in China in the coming years to boost its local annual production capacity by more than 60% to 4 million units by 2018.
- China tops the list of countries where automotive CEOs expect their business to grow this year. In addition, nearly two-thirds of 90 automotive CEOs from 32 countries who are looking to China as a growth market intend to build or further expand their manufacturing capacity in the next 12 months, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers’ 16th Annual Global CEO Survey Automotive Summary. 32% of automotive CEOs said China is one of their top markets. Consulting firm McKinsey & Co said China’s passenger vehicle market will maintain an average year-on-year growth of 8% over the next decade.
- Honda Motor Co is boosting the localization of its research and development (R&D) in China. By the end of 2015, Honda plans to introduce 12 new models to China, including the mid-size sedan Crider, developed mainly by Chinese staff for China, and the multipurpose vehicle Jade. Honda plans to produce hybrid models in China within three years, which it says will result in cheaper prices. The company is targeting sales of 1.3 million units annually in the Chinese market before the end of 2015, said Seiji Kuraishi, President of Honda Motor (China) Investment Co.
- The listing of car parts-supplier Nexteer Automotive will offer investors an opportunity to get involved in the Chinese passenger-vehicle market, but the company is facing downward pressure on selling prices of its products as car markets in the U.S. and Europe slow down. Nexteer’s net profit fell three basis points to 2.7% last year, while its gross margin stayed at 12.3%. Sales fell 3.6% to USD2.2 billion. The company will launch three new electric power steering programs in the second half. Nexteer has 20 manufacturing plants, 10 customer services centers, and five regional engineering centers. Nexteer seeks to raise up to HKD2.5 billion through an initial public offering (IPO). Trading is due to begin on July 3.
- Wu Xiao’an, Chief Executive of both Xinchen Power and Brilliance Auto – a joint venture between Xinchen’s parent company Huachen and the luxury German marque that produces BMW cars in China – said Xinchen could emerge as a top-tier engine supplier to BMW. Wu was speaking on the sidelines of the company’s inauguration of a plant in Mianyang, Sichuan, which will produce the first batch of 25,000 BMW N20 engines next June. Brilliance Auto is doubling its engine capacity to 400,000 units with a new plant in Tiexi, Shenyang province, that will begin production in 2015. But that may still fall short of BMW’s long-term goal to sell 600,000 cars a year in China, nearly double its sales last year.
- Shanghai car plate prices fell for the third consecutive month at the June auction as speculation cooled. The average successful bid dropped to CNY77,823, down CNY2,980 from last month, while the lowest price shed CNY3,100 to CNY77,600, according to the Shanghai International Commodity Auction Co. These falls saw Shanghai car plate prices dip below the CNY80,000 psychological benchmark, which was first surpassed in February. In March, prices reached a record high of more than CNY90,000, after soaring 32.5% in the first three months of this year – more than for all of last year.
- Beijing Automotive Group Co, which manufactures vehicles with Daimler and Hyundai Motor Co in China, has set up a unit to spearhead acquisitions abroad, starting with Europe. BAIC International Development Co will be in charge of overseas acquisitions and investment as well as boosting international vehicle and parts sales. The carmaker plans to have CNY2.5 billion of profit from abroad with a sales target of 400,000 units by 2020.
- Cheng Guozhang, Executive President of Renault China, said the company will introduce 10 new models in the next four years and raise the number of its dealers by 60% to 185 in two years. Renault’s proposal of building a manufacturing base together with its Chinese partner Dongfeng Motor in Wuhan, Hubei province, has got the approval from China’s Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP), but still needs the nod from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). The production facilities are designed with capacities to produce 150,000 passenger vehicles and 150,000 engines per year.
- Up to 500 E150 electric cars produced by Beijing Auto will be given a CNY140,000 purchase subsidy along with a free car plate for their promotion in the capital. The money includes CNY20,000 promised by the carmaker, with the rest to come from the central Beijing governments. That means a customer only needs to pay CNY109,800 for the car, which carries a price tag CNY249,800.
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