General Motors plans to sell full-size sports utility vehicle (SUV) models in China for the first time. The company's president in China told Reuters that they will import a range of models to strengthen the product range in the world's largest auto market.
The plan points to a modal change for GM, which produces all the vehicles it sells in China, which will be the only major economy to grow this year in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
China's second largest foreign automaker GM aims to offer four models to improve its brand image and support sales improvement: Chevrolet's Tahoe and Suburban, Cadillac's Escalade, and GMC Yukon Denali.
The Detroit-based company is exhibiting these models at the annual China International Import Fair in Shanghai, which begins Wednesday and will continue until next week.
“Our intention is to attract customers and find a way to sell these cars in China,” said Julian Blissett, GM's chief of China.
The automaker sees opportunities for such vehicles, partly due to the abolition of the one-child policy and the growth of Chinese families.
GM's Buick and Cadillac mid-size SUVs helped the group's Chinese sales to grow 12 percent in the third quarter of this year. This is the first quarterly growth in the last two years.
With the expansion plan, GM's first official GMC vehicle sale in China will also be made. This is known as the group's premium brand. Previously, GMC vehicles were only sold in the country through unofficial importers.
Competition is big
China, where more than 25 million vehicles were sold last year, is a crucial battlefield for global automakers such as Volkswagen, GM and Toyota, as well as local leaders Geely and Great Wall, which are the largest foreign players by sales volume.
The country has seen an increase in auto sales in recent months following the decline caused by COVID-19.
Source: China International Radio
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