China's "Big Three" auto groups to invest $6.65 bln to develop local brands

Shanghai. September 12 (Gasgoo.com) - China's big three domestic auto group plan to invest a total amount of 50 billion yuan (US$6.65 billion) to develop local brands, a senior official said at an automobile industry conference in Tianjin early this week.

"FAW Group will invest 13 billion yuan (US$1.71 billion) to develop its own brands," said Zhang Xiaoyu, president of the council of China Automotive Engineering Society (CAES) and vice president of the China Machinery Industry Federation.

Shanghai Automotive has budgeted over 27 billion yuan (US$3.56 billion) for the next five years. The fund will be used to develop new engines and sedans with independent intellectual prosperity rights and build a technical center, Zhang said.

Dongfeng, which is traditionally a truck manufacturer, plans to spend 10 billion yuan (US$1.3 billion) to boost its passenger vehicle sector.