Auto industry discusses how to battle financial crisis

The international financial crisis has also affected the auto industry. Over the weekend, Chinese auto giants gathered in Tianjin to attend an auto industry forum to discuss how to battle the financial crisis.

The forum attracted many from the auto industry. They shared their views on dealing with the financial crisis. Many Chinese enterprises said they are uncertain about the future and hoped to find answers at the forum.

Zhang Xiaoyu, Chairman of Society of Automotive Engineers of China said "Growth in China's auto industry dropped by over ten percentage points over the past several months. The industry was expected to grow by 13 percent this year, and output should exceed 10 million vehicles. But now, it has been hit by the crisis. We expect output will be about 9.6 million."

Despite the pressures, auto experts and enterprises still think the impact on the Chinese auto industry will be limited. They believe China should turn the crisis into an opportunity. They are still optimistic about the Chinese auto market.

Zhao Hang, Director of China Auto Technology Research Center said "Domestic demand is still rising, despite the slower growth. We still have opportunities. Taking advantage of the macro economic situation, we can adjust our industrial structure to deal with the crisis, preparing for future development."

The National Development and Reform Commission said the government will carry out policies to enlarge domestic demand, including policies to increase farmers' incomes and rural infrastructure investment. Some auto enterprises say this will lead to new business opportunities for them.