Gasgoo.com (Shanghai August 12) - Earlier this week, Mitsubishi CEO President Osamu Masuko stated that Mitsubishi will halt expansion of its import operations in China. According to Mr. Masuko, Mitsubishi's future operations in the country will be conducted via joint venture Guangqi Mitsubishi.
It seems that Mitsubishi's decision to stop expansion of direct imports from China was made in order to help boost its domestic operations in the country. Mr. Masuko stated that he hopes to see Guangqi Mitsubishi achieving annual production and sales volumes of 130,000 vehicles. Furthermore, he stated his desire to see Mitsubishi expand its automobile production and sales capacities from 200,000 units to 300,000 units in five years.
Mitsubishi actually has a very long history in China, being one of the first foreign manufacturer to enter the country. Mr. Masuko confessed that Mitsubishi has always been searching for a domestic partner to establish a 50:50 joint venture. However Mitsubishi has had to wait until September 2012 to achieve this dream. Mr. Masuko explains that the long time it took for the manufacturer to establish a 50:50 JV is the reason why its progress in China has not been ideal.
Guangqi Mitsubishi officially began operation in 2013. Currently it offers two domestically-manufactured vehicles. Mr. Masuko commented on the state of the JV, saying that "it is still a baby, but we hope that it will grow rapidly."
According to its strategy, Mitsubishi aims to develop in the field of SUVs. Mr. Masuko explained that Mitsubishi will be continuously releasing new SUV products. At the same time, the manufacturer will continue to monitor demand in the Chinese market to determine whether or not it wants to enter the local sedan segment as well.
