BEIJING: Leading global automobile makers gathered in Beijing yesterday for China’s biggest car show, expressing confidence in the world’s largest car market even though lacklustre economic growth and environmental restrictions have generated uncertainty.
Spectators and journalists crowded around displays at the Beijing International Automotive Exhibition, which features more than 1,100 vehicles and opens to the public tomorrow, while female models drew the attention of photographers.
General Motors, Toyota, Volkswagen and Hyundai are among the global manufacturers on the list of attendees, along with SAIC and Dongfeng, China’s number one and two domestic automakers. “This is obviously an incredibly important market for General Motors,” its president Dan Ammann told reporters, saying China since 2010 had been the US carmaker’s largest market which now accounted for a third of total volume.
GM’s China president Matt Tsien said that “we’re very optimistic with regard to the overall progress in the market” even though the world’s second-largest economy was entering a phase of “more modest growth”.
At Ford Motor’s display President and CEO Alan Mulally rode onto the stage in a bright red Ford Mustang, the latest incarnation of the iconic brand which is celebrating its 50th year.
“How cool is that?” he said after getting out, his red tie matching the paint job. The expo comes as more cities are restricting the number of cars on the road in a bid to battle pollution and congestion — moves that analysts warn could cut into purchases.
The eastern city of Hangzhou, a popular tourist destination, last month became the sixth major Chinese city to implement such a restriction, with some estimates placing the limit at 80,000 car plates a year.
China’s car sales surged 13.9 percent to 21.98 million vehicles last year. But that growth hit a speed bump in March, slowing to a 6.6 percent year-on-year rise after reaching a record 17.8 percent high in January. China’s economy has also turned in its weakest performance in 18 months, growing 7.4 percent in the first quarter of 2014.
Beijing has indicated a willingness to accept weaker growth as it tries to move the economy away from investment and toward domestic consumption.
Despite the concerns, industry players and analysts say the China market’s importance to global manufacturers cannot be overstated.
“I think the market for cars is going to continue to be fantastic,” Ford’s Mulally told reporters, adding that the promise of increased domestic spending outweighed concerns about congestion.
China’s overall plan “to move to a consumer-based economy” was a key factor “that reduces risk”, he said. AFP
