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Great Wall Motors targets Thailand

Great Wall Motors will make Thailand a strategic hub of its inroads into the ASEAN countries, said Wei Jianjun, chairman of China's largest SUV maker on Tuesday. Wei made the remarks when he received Thai Ambassador to China Arthayudh Srisamoot at the carmaker's plant and technology center in Baoding, Hebei province. Srisamoot said the company's models and technologies, which include autonomous driving, are impressive. He also welcomed outstanding Chinese carmakers to invest in Thailand. Great Wall Motors inked a deal in February with GM to acquire its plant in Thailand, which is set to aid the carmaker's development in the country and neighboring nations.

VW to invest $2.2bn in Chinese NEV firms

Volkswagen said on Friday it will invest around 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion) in two Chinese companies in the electric vehicle sector, calling it "the world's biggest market". The German car giant said it will take a 50 percent stake in JAG--the parent company of state-owned JAC Motors－and increase its holding in the JAC Volkswagen joint venture from 50 percent to 75 percent for around 1 billion euros. It will also buy a 26 percent share of Chinese battery supplier Gotion High-Tech for 1.1 billion euros. China, which accounts for 40 percent of Volkswagen's sales, has become the world's largest auto market in recent years, with Beijing repeatedly pledging to support the electric vehicle industry.

Exports of cars from Shanghai almost double

Shanghai Customs said Thursday its automobile exports saw a year-on-year increase of 97.4 percent from April 1 to May 25. About 33,500 vehicles were exported from the Shanghai port during the period, accounting for 71.8 percent of the total of the country's four major auto ports in Tianjin, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Dalian. The customs said timely warnings, smooth online clearance channels and streamlined on-site procedures have helped auto exports.

Nio may list new entity on the stock market

Electric vehicle maker Nio's CEO said it may list a new Nio China entity as the cash-strapped company eyes a rebound after selling fewer vehicles during the coronavirus outbreak. Nio secured a 7-billion-yuan ($989 million) investment in Nio China from state-controlled investors last month. The company will make a comprehensive decision about a stock market listing based on capital market conditions, CEO William Li said on an earnings call Thursday. Nio's revenue stood at 1.37 billion yuan in the first quarter, the company reported earlier, compared with an average analyst estimate of 1.67 billion yuan, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

French government to bail out automakers

France's government is injecting more than 8 billion euros ($8.8 billion) to save the country's car industry from huge losses wrought by virus lockdowns, and wants to use the crisis to make France the No. 1 producer of electric vehicles in Europe. Starting next week, consumers can get up to 12,000 euros from the government for buying an electric car under the "historic" plan unveiled Tuesday by President Emmanuel Macron. "Our country wouldn't be the same without its great brands－Renault, Peugeot, Citroen," Macron said, decrying an "unprecedented crisis" for the industry that has seen production plunge more than 90 percent in France alone.

Vehicle production plummets in Britain

British car production could slump this year to the lowest level in decades after the coronavirus pandemic forced factories to close and hit demand, according to an industry group. Just 197 cars were made in April compared with 71,000 in the same month in 2019, leaving year-to-date production down over a quarter, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said. Only some automotive sites have reopened since then with the country's largest car plant, Nissan's Sunderland facility, set to resume production next month.

Motoring - Agencies