China Auto News of the Week (June 1 - June 5, 2009)

Ford's China venture May car sales up 49%

Shanghai, June 4 (Gasgoo.com) Ford Motor's passenger vehicle-making joint venture in China sold 27,839 cars in May, up 48.7% from a year earlier, its Chinese partner said today, Dow Jones reported.

Sales at the joint venture, Changan Ford Mazda Automobile Co., rose 10.6% in the first five months to 110,796 units from 100,183 units of the same period of last year, Chongqing Changan Auto, one of China's largest auto makers, said in a statement.

Tengzhong may build new Hummer plant in Chengdu

Shanghai, June 4 (Gasgoo.com) Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co, a machinery company based in western China, will spend 550 million yuan (US$80.5 million) to buy Hummer brand, and invest another 450 million yuan to set up a new Hummer production line in Chengdu, the capital province of Sichuan, Chengdu Business Daily reported Thursday, citing a letter of intent from Tengzhong.

Chery sells 20% stake to local investors for $293M

Shanghai, June 3 (Gasgoo.com) China's Chery Auto has raised about two billion yuan ($293 million) by selling a 20% stake in the company to local private-equity investors including Bohai Industrial Investment Fund Management Co. and CDH Investments, reported The Wall Street Journal today, citing sources familiar with the deal.

Chery spokesman Jin Yibo has confirmed the scale of the fund-raising and said the company plans to use the money to continue its own development. He added that the funds weren't raised to pursue overseas acquisitions. The deal was finalized over the past few months.

GM sells Hummer to China's Tengzhong

Shanghai, June 3 (Gasgoo.com) General Motors has reached a preliminary agreement to sell its Hummer brand to Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co, a machinery company based in western China, according to media reports on Tuesday.

GM said that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Sichuan Tengzhong for the sale. Tengzhong said it will retain Hummer's senior management and operational team,

Shanghai GM unaffected by GM bankruptcy

Shanghai, June 2 (Gasgoo.com) Shanghai GM, General Motors Corp's Chinese JV with SAIC Motor Corp, has reiterated in a statement obtained today by Gasgoo that "the court supervised reinvention of GM in the United States will have no substantial impact on Shanghai GM, and Shanghai GM will continue its normal business operations as usual."

BMW Brilliance has new president, CEO today

Shanghai, June 1 (Gasgoo.com) BMW AG and Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Co., Ltd. have jointly appointed Mr. Olaf Kastner as President and CEO of BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd.

The appointment took effect as of June 1, 2009, sina.com said yesterday, citing the joint venture's announcement.

Shanghai GM's May sales up 50% to 56,011 cars

Shanghai, June 1 (Gasgoo.com) Shanghai GM, General Motors' passenger car joint venture in China, sold 56,011 vehicles in May, rising more than 50% year on year and overtaking April's sales growth, Gasgoo.com said today, citing the company’s statement.

Shanghai GM's May sales were driven by demands for its Buick and Chevrolet brands. Last month, Shanghai GM sold 37,575 cars of the Buick brand, including 6,440 units of the Buick New Regal and 23,100 units of the Buick New Excelle. 

China lifts gasoline, diesel prices 7% today

China raised retail diesel and gasoline prices by 6-7 percent from Monday, the second and biggest increase this year, relieving some pressure on refiners but adding to the burden on farmers and small businesses.

The increase was short of the rise of 10 percent or more that state oil firms and some analysts had argued was needed after global crude prices surged 30 percent in May, their biggest one-month gain in a decade.