GAC Motor shows range at Dubai show

GAC Motor Co, a division of the State-owned Guangzhou Automobile Group Co, expects to become competitive in the Middle East by bringing its second-generation GS4, GA6 and new 1.5T models to a leading regional auto exhibition, according to a top company manager.

"The Middle East, as well as Africa and the South East Asia, will be major markets to increase our global presence and promote Chinese home-developed brands," said Wu Song, executive director of GAC Group and general manager of GAC Motor.

As part of efforts to increase the marque's presence in the Middle East, the company brought its competitive range of second-generation vehicles to the Dubai International Motor Show, which runs through Saturday.

"High quality and superior design played an important role in making us competitive both in the domestic and overseas markets, amid slowdowns of exports and domestic demand for cars," Wu said.

Industrial sources said sales in the domestic car market increased only 0.8 percent year-on-year from January to October of this year.

GAC Motor, which was established in 2008 and focuses on development of self-owned brand vehicles, however, reported a sharp increase of 59 percent year-on-year to 137,000 sales in the first 10 months of 2015. The company expects to sell 180,000 vehicles this year, Wu said.

In contrast to an overall decline in exports of Chinese cars, GAC Motor also reported a year-on-year increase of 38 percent in overseas sales in the first 10 months of the year. Sales of the GS4, which was launched on the Chinese market in April, surpassed 21,000 units in October.

"We believe the GS4 would be also popular in the Middle East, as many sales agents have shown great interest in introducing the vehicle to the local market," Wu said. "GAC Motor's vehicles are in accordance with the industry's highest quality and safety standards, as we aim to bring competitive products to the overseas market."

The company, based in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, has opened sales channels in major markets including the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Lebanon and Qatar.

"GAC Motors' goal is beyond increased sales - we are aiming to build an international brand that is competitive both in China and abroad," Wu said.

Early in January 2014, GAC Motor launched its global market strategy in Dubai, making it become the only Chinese carmaker to have entered the high-end market in the Middle East. In just a year after GAC Motors entered Kuwait, its sales increased three-fold, taking up 40 percent of local sales of Chinese-brand cars, and ranking top among Chinese brands, according to the company.

Wu said the company's cars would also be available in North America and Europe in the near future, to boost its international presence.

"By abiding by high quality standards, we will eventually become a competitive global brand," he said.

The company has so far built sales networks in 18 countries and regions.

Following soaring demand both in the domestic and overseas markets, GAC Motor plans to launch 20 to 30 new models in the next five years, with production capacity reaching 350,000 units in 2016, according to the company.

qiuquanlin@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 11/13/2015 page14)