Brilliance looks to enter US auto market

Domestic automaker Brilliance China Automotive Holdings has signed an agreement with two Texas-based investors to begin exporting low-cost sedans to the US in 2009, Reuters reported. Brilliance, which has a China joint venture with BMW, signed a distribution agreement with Rocket Capital Investment Group and Red McCombs Automotive that will include a US$100 million purchase a 10-15% stake in the Chinese auto company. Rocket Capital is owned by Houston Rockets owner Les Alexander, while billionaire Red McCombs’s company is the largest car dealership in Texas. With the move, Brilliance has become the latest Chinese car company to foray into the US market, following Geely and Chery. Executives are hopeful about the prospects of Brilliance’s Zhonghua sedan, which sells well in Eastern Europe.