SAIC '08 net profit down 50%, hit by Ssangyong

China's SAIC Motor said on Friday it expected its net profit in 2008 to have fallen more than 50 percent from a year earlier, hit in part by its investment in South Korea's Ssangyong Motor Co, which has filed for bankruptcy protection.

SAIC, China's largest automaker, also blamed a slowdown in sales amid a slumping economy for the slide in profit.

It earned a net profit of 4.63 billion yuan ($677 million), or 0.708 yuan per share, last year.

The company said in a statement it expected to set aside substantial provisions for its investment in Ssangyong, in which it holds a 51 percent stake.