China Moves To Lift Ban On Foreign Passenger Car Manufacturing Investment
21
Sponsored Links
China has announced that it will lift a ban on foreign passenger car manufacturing investments, opening the door for new production opportunities in the country.
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce and National Development and Reform Commission made the announcement on Monday, saying that the ban will be lifted as of January 1st, 2022. The ban restricts foreign ownership in the Chinese domestic automobile industry.
General Motors has a robust presence in the Chinese market, selling a variety of passenger cars and commercial vehicles under a variety of brands, including Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Wuling, and Baojun. However, rather than import vehicles for sale in China, General Motors produces vehicles via joint ventures with Chinese partners, thus circumventing hefty tariffs placed on imported vehicles entering the Chinese market.
For example, Shanghai General Motors Company Ltd., better known as SAIC-GM, is a joint venture between General Motors and the Chinese state-owned SAIC Motor, and is responsible for GM China’s Buick, Cadillac, and Chevy models. General Motors also has a joint venture with Wuling, which is responsible for Wuling and Baojun vehicles.
Several other foreign automakers have also partnered with Chinese manufacturers to produce vehicles in the country, including Ford, Volkswagen, BMW.
Now, with the ban on foreign passenger car manufacturing investment set to lift in January, General Motors will no longer need to partner with Chinese groups to produce vehicles in China. However, with a range of partnerships already established, the ban will likely apply primarily to new manufacturers entering the Chinese market, at least for the time being.
In addition to producing cars with Chinese partners, General Motors is also developing vehicles in China for export to other markets. One example is the Chevy N400 Van, which is in fact a Wuling Hongguang V that is rebadged as a Chevy vehicle for sale in international markets, including in South America. Another example is the Chevy Sail, which is sold in Mexico as the Chevy Aveo, and the Chevy Monza, which is sold in Mexico as the new Chevy Cavalier Turbo.
How General Motors will approach this shift in Chinese passenger car manufacturing requirements remains to be seen. That said, you can be sure we’ll be there to cover it all in-depth. As such, make sure to subscribe to GM Authority for more General Motors business news, General Motors production news, and around-the-clock GM news coverage.
- Sweepstakes Of The Month: Win a Corvette Z06 and 2024 Silverado. Details here.
Sponsored Links
I thoght this restriction had been lifted years before, thus permitting Tesla to build a factory and build cars in Shanghai without a Chinese joint-venture partner.
Tesla received special permission to enter without a JV. China wanted the technology and supply chains bad enough, and estimated that Tesla’s market share would be fairly limited.
Aha. Typically Elon Musk. “I am important and laws don’t apply to me”. In Germany, east of Berlin, he is about to start production in his new Tesla-factory before the building has been authorized by the competent authorities.ü
But nonetheless my memory says that China’s lifting of the JV requirement had been announced years before, so it does not come as a surprise. Right?
Recently I read that 51% of all Tesla sold worldwide come from Tesla’s fsctory in Shanghai.
now that they’ve learned everything they could from the foreign brands for past 20 years, they want to pave the way for the flood of cheap ev’s the’ve got lined up for north america and europe.
Those EV’s would never work over here nor Europe, or even for that matter, pass safety regulations in the west. Chinas cheapest EV’s which are still pricier than a Chevy spark, are built for smaller people, max out at 30 mph, and only go about 20-50 miles depending on configuration. It would be a hard sell in even London as western civilization demands more of a personal vehicle. The main reason these things sell in China is largely because bejieng has placed a limit on the total number of drivers license the will issue China wide. After that, you’ll need wait for someone to die or decide not to renew to apply for a license. Chinas car buying boom has been fueled by this and their car sales are forecasted to tank significantly here in the future as those fill up.
The cheapest Chinese EV only cost $4,000 in U.S. dollars. And it is the world’s most produced EV, over three times what Tesla has built. Look it up. BTW, it is manufactured by a GM partner.
You completely missed his point that those Chinese EVs can’t legally qualify as cars in the West. If you want to make a fair comparison to what’s being sold in China, you need to include GEM cars and golf carts.
Speaking of London, Jake, don’t you know that the compsny which builds the London Taxis, is owned by Geely, one of the largest privately owned automobile manufacturers in China?
Various Chinese EV startups like Nio are about to enter the markets of the former colonial masters.
They’ll probably only sell more expensive vehicles here. Maybe their cars will be slightly cheaper, but I wouldn’t count on them ever going too far down market.
They see our market and the prices it will bear just as well as anyone else.
with all of the controversy/baggage surrounding china, i think they’ll have to be significantly cheaper than the competition.
Well, I suppose we’ll find out, but I bet your fellow countrymen will buy their cars without any concern about politics.
A few people will care about that, but that will be a tiny minority. Kind of like the pro-union types that nobody listens to.
Brandon’s in bed with his Chinese buddies!
Hey Shockandawe… I am not sticking up for anybody but GM WAS making vehicles in China long before Biden was president! If that’s where the sales are then why not?… Toyota is allowed to build new factories here.
GM will be gutted if China takes Taiwan, has was with India, a US ally, or if there are problems in the South China Sea. GM, after selling Opel, turned to its Pan Asian Design Center in China for the development of Latin American vehicles.
GM makes most of it’s sales n the Americas & China since giving up on Oz, India, Russia and Europe. If there are future problems GM’s best option is a merger with Honda thus gaining entry to the progitable and tech savy Japanese market. Otherwise a hobbled GM would make a take over target for Tata or the troubled Nissan-Renault Alliance.
GM is doing very well with China. As an example the 3.4 L V6 in the first generation (2005 – 2009) Chevy Equinox was built by SAIC and it is much better than the smaller I4 that the present Equinox has. My own 2009 Equinox never had any engine maintenance except oil and air filter changes (and one coolant change after ten years). Everything else on that 13 year old V6 engine is factory original.
Those Equinox’s had problems with with coolant incompatible hoses. Sounds like you got lucky and bought at end of model production when it was corrected.
china one day tell GM and other auto makers to get out of china and take over the factory by nationalizing the auto industry saving them the cost of building the factories.
Hail Chairman Mao!
I don’t trust China. I can see automakers investing then China either stealing the tech we are holding back on or just moving in and taking plants. Why build when you can let others,
There is a motive here.
re this from the article »However, with a range of partnerships already established, the ban will likely apply primarily to new manufacturers entering the Chinese market, at least for the time being.« — the established manufacturer Stellantis announced their intention to raise their share in the JV with GAC from 50% to 75%.