BIZCHINA> New Models
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BIZCHINA> New Models
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Shanghai Auto Show to highlight fuel-efficient cars
(AP)
Updated: 2007-04-20 19:44 "We want to promote our brand in international markets, since our cars have already been exported to Africa, the Middle East and South America," said Zhang Xiaodong of Geely Group Ltd. Geely will show 14 vehicles in Shanghai, double the number at the 2005 show, said Zhang. The biggest Chinese producer, Chery Automobile Co., will be spotlighting 30 models ranging from a subcompact to an SUV, up from six in 2005, said company spokesman Zhang Dayong. Nanjing Automobile Group Ltd. says it will display its Chinese-made MG sports cars. The company bought the iconic British brand in 2005 and began production in March. Last year, China surged past Japan to become the world's No. 2 vehicle market after the United States. Vehicle sales, including trucks and buses, rose 25.1 percent to 7.2 million units, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers says. Passenger car sales were up 37 percent at 3.8 million. That was up from 3.3 million vehicles sold in 2002 and just 1.6 million in 1997. U.S. car and truck sales fell slightly last year to 16.5 million units. China's government-endorsed car craze has radically remade its landscape. Highways crisscross the country, and ancient city centers have been bulldozed to make way for car-friendly avenues. But the car culture has left major cities choked by smog rush-hour traffic jams. It has boosted dependence on imported oil, which worried communist leaders see as a strategic weakness. Strong Chinese sales have brought relief to U.S. automakers, which are seeing weak demand at home. European and Japanese automakers report similar surges. Luxury producers such as Rolls-Royce, owned by BMW, say sales to China's new rich are soaring. Auto shows are so expensive that they typically are held in one market only once every two or three years. In Europe, the major shows in Paris and Frankfurt are held in alternate years. The Tokyo Auto Show takes place every other year. With other cities also planning competing auto shows of their own, China may be hurting itself by splitting public attention by having the Beijing and Shanghai events so close together, said Ashvin Chotai, who follows the Chinese industry for consulting firm Global Insight. China leaders will have to focus on one and downgrade or eliminate the others if they want to be a premier auto industry site, he said. "Beijing has to decide," Chotai said, "which location will be the showcase for the world." (For more biz stories, please visit Industries)
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