Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp is to sell own-brand vehicles in Europe from next year, the Financial Times reported. China's largest carmaker will export autos based on MG Rover designs, though Nanjing Automobile paid US$92.2 million for the failed British firm's assets in 2005. Customs data show China exported 172,800 vehicles last year, but just 31,100 of them were saloons. Through joint ventures with General Motors and Volkswagen, Shanghai Automotive became the nation's biggest carmaker, but has not yet sold autos with its own badge. "This is a turning point for China's market," said Wang Xiaoqiu, the general manager of the self-branded unit. "We want to create our own path."
Categories