Cars

For FAW, the name is the game

By Bao Chang (China Daily)
Updated: 2011-03-08 16:06

BEIJING - FAW Group Corporation, China's second-largest auto manufacturer by sales, is targeting a 10 percent increase in sales revenues this year as it expands the development of its brand portfolio.

"The sales revenues of FAW Group will see a 10 percent increase this year, and we plan to strengthen our efforts to develop our own brands, in addition to cooperation with other business partners over the next few years," said Xu Jianyi, chairman of FAW Group.

FAW, the parent company of the Shenzhen-listed FAW Car Co, is engaged in two joint ventures, with Volkswagen AG and Toyota Motor Co in China.

Last year, it sold 2.56 million autos, an increase of 31.6 percent year-on-year, with its own brands reflecting a sales volume of 1.03 million, a 37.7 percent annual increase and 5.4 percent higher than the industry average.

"Building FAW's own brands is the strategy we have been sticking to for several years, and it has become our top priority in a period when clients attach great importance to brand awareness," Xu said.

"In the next year or two, we will develop products of all auto types, cars and trucks, using our own brands to compete with rivals in a market in which companies, if they want to survive, must be able to make a complete range of products under their own brands," Xu added.

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Previously, local media reported that Volkswagen AG, Europe's biggest carmaker, is in talks with its Chinese partners about developing a local brand, as rivals prepare to begin sales of new local brands specially created for the world's largest auto market.

FAW Group was believed to be Volkswagen's potential partner in a joint development of a new brand. Xu of FAW declined to comment on that, saying only that "FAW won't turn down opportunities for cooperation with foreign countries through which we can improve ourselves in terms of techniques and facilities".

FAW announced that in January its own brands had favorable sales, with 237,000 cars sold, a 15.82 percent year-on-year increase, and 4,125 trucks, an 89.66 percent increase.

During the 12th Five-Year Plan period (2011-2015), the State-owned company aims to sell more than 2 million of its own brands autos annually and increase sales of its brands by 10 percent.

By the end of 2015, FAW plans to lead the domestic market in terms of revenues and profits generated by its brands, with annual total sales revenues reaching 600 billion yuan ($91.5 billion), accounting for 20 percent of the domestic auto market.