Rumors surrounding SAIC-GM, General Motors’ joint venture that allows the Detroit-based company to manufacture and sell Buick, Cadillac and Chevy vehicles in China, have hinted at the possibility of job cuts due to slow sales. Now, according to Automotive News China, SAIC-GM has refuted such claims.
“The company does not have any plans to buy out employees above the age of 45 or any other layoff plan,” a spokesperson for SAIC-GM said. “The negative impact caused by the online rumors has disrupted the normal production and operation order of the company and seriously damaged the company’s business reputation.”
It’s unclear exactly where these rumors may have arisen from. However, it may have something to do with the sales drop in the Chinese market. Over the course of the 2022 calendar year, GM China sales figures decreased 20 percent to 2,303,100 units sold across all five GM brands in the Asian country, including Buick, Chevy, Cadillac, Baojun and Wuling. In fact, only Cadillac notched a positive gain when comparing Q4 2022 sales numbers to Q4 2021 figures.
Sales Results - Q4 2022 - China - GM Totals
| BRAND | Q4 2022 / Q4 2021 | Q4 2022 | Q4 2021 | YTD 2022 / YTD 2021 | YTD 2022 | YTD 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BAOJUN TOTAL | -76.20% | 7,900 | 33,200 | -76.57% | 49,400 | 210,800 |
| WULING TOTAL | -26.03% | 296,700 | 401,100 | -13.32% | 1,216,850 | 1,403,800 |
| CHEVROLET TOTAL | -4.19% | 50,300 | 52,500 | -13.59% | 198,400 | 229,600 |
| CADILLAC TOTAL | +4.31% | 53,200 | 51,000 | -16.26% | 194,100 | 231,800 |
| BUICK TOTAL | -16.04% | 167,500 | 199,500 | -21.03% | 644,350 | 815,900 |
| GM CHINA TOTAL | -21.93% | 575,600 | 737,300 | -20.36% | 2,303,100 | 2,891,900 |
Baojun sales numbers saw the largest fall, with a 76 percent decrease as compared to 2021 figures to 49,400 units sold during the 2022 calendar year. Wuling, Chevy, Cadillac and Buick saw comparably mild drops in sales to 1,216,850, 198,400, 194,100, and 644,350 units sold during the 2022 calendar year, respectively.
Although sales numbers may be down for the 2022 calendar year, it’s worth noting that SAIC-GM surpassed the 1,000,000-vehicle export mark back in July 2022. This impressive achievement serves to reinforce SAIC-GM’s role as one of the largest manufacturers in China, even despite the drop in sales figures.
As a reminder, the SAIC-GM and SAIC-GM-Wuling joint ventures currently export more than a dozen nameplates to market around the globe, including North America, Central America, South America, Africa and Asia. The joint venture’s current export products include the second-generation Buick Envision for North America, the Chevy Aveo, the Chevy Onix, the Chevy Groove, the Chevy Captiva, the Chevy Tracker and the Chevy Monza (marketed as the Cavalier Turbo in Mexico).
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Comments
Don’t forget about Kaher. He is a Grim Reaper from australia… lol
I suspect the the Chinese government is bad mouthing US companies.
“The company does not have any plans to buy out employees above the age of 45 or any other layoff plan,” a spokesperson for SAIC-GM said.
It seems oddly specific to pick 45 and above.
Cause 45 and below will be drafted in war against Taiwan???