China Auto News of the Week (May 5 - May 9, 2008)
FAW talks with Ford to buy into Changan Ford Mazda
FAW Car is in talk with Ford to buy into or acquire the production line of Changan Ford Mazda， an insider close to FAW's top management said recently to the 21st Century Business Herald.
"Ford Motor holds 33% share of Mazda Motor. Ford and FAW have been in close contact，" the sources said. Currently the two carmakers have reached an initial agreement， and FAW is applying for the approval from the central government and expect the government's regulatory body to okay this deal.
Chery A1 to export in 2008 as Dodge / Chrysler minicar
The Chery A1 which is to be re-branded as a Dodge mini vehicle will go on sale in Europe， North America and Asia later this year. The A1 cars are designed and built in Chery's Wuhu plant, and then exported to these markets with Chrysler's subsidiary Dodge branding， or Chrysler's own badge for some.
The Chinese car maker said that the Chery A1 has passed the road trial and crash test， and will be exported to the European， North American and Asian markets in the second half of 2008 as the first car model in the strategic cooperation between Chery and Chrysler for Chery's overseas growth. As their partnership warms up， Chrysler is likely to set up a joint venture with Chery in the near future.
Honda to boost China capacity by 20 pct - Nikkei
Honda Motor Co will boost its annual output capacity in China by about 20 percent to 650，000 vehicles， aiming for a larger share of the fast-growing market， the Nikkei business daily said on Thursday.
Honda， Japan's No.2 carmaker， currently manufactures some 530，000 vehicles a year at two Chinese joint ventures， Guangzhou Honda Automobile Co and Dongfeng Honda Automobile Co.
Toyota sees '08/09 China JV sales up 36 pct
Toyota Motor Corp said on Thursday it expected sales at its Chinese joint ventures to rise 36 percent to 640，000 vehicles in the year to March 31， 2009.Last year， sales totalled 470，000 vehicles.
Toyota does not include sales at its Chinese joint ventures in its tally for group-wide global sales because it does not hold majority stakes in them.
China aims to export over 1 mln vehicles in 2009
In 2007， China exported 6，130，000 vehicles， up 79% y/y， to be world’s top eight auto exporter. State Information Center forecasts that in 2010 China will export 1.2 million vehicles and jump to world top five， yet this figure might be reached before 2010.
In the first quarter of 2008， China’s auto exports rise by 88%， a growth rate indicating that this year the exports can surpass 1million units， said Zhang Ji， deputy director of Department of Mechanic， Electronic and Hi-Tech Industry， Ministry of Commerce of China， in the forum of "Strategy Selection in China Automaking Industry for future 10 years" hosted by China Automotive Review (CAR).
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