BMW China President and CEO to resign in early 2013

Gasgoo.com (Shanghai December 5) - BMW China President and CEO Christoph Stark will officially announce his retirement this weekend, Economic Observer News reported today, citing internal sources. Mr. Stark will reportedly continue to assume his post until the beginning of next year, when his replacement will be announced. The news comes not long after rival German manufacturers VW and Mercedes-Benz announced changes to their respective management teams.

The 59 year old Mr. Stark (pictured) originally planned to leave the company at the end of next year, but due to personal reasons, he announced his retirement ahead of schedule. Under his leadership, Mr. Stark, who speaks fluent Chinese and is very knowledgeable about the country's market, enacted a series of pricing and sales strategies that saw BMW's annual sales volume grow from under 20,000 units to 300,000 units in eight years time.

Many in the industry credit Mr. Stark with the success of BMW's domestic production program. BMW, along with its Chinese partner Brilliance Automotive, is currently able to manufacture up to 300,000 vehicles and 400,000 engines every year in China. Furthermore, Mr. Stark helped bring an unprecedented amount of local talent, setting a standard for foreign automobile manufacturers in China.

BMW has yet to announce Mr. Stark's successors, but several in the media predict he or she will come from the manufacturer's German headquarters, due to the increasing importance of the Chinese market. According to various reports, certain departments, including finance and marketing, will need to report more often to German headquarters.