According to the China Association of
Automobile Manufacturers, China became a net exporter of vehicles in 2005, for the first time ever.
Exports
totalled 172,800 units, up 120 percent from 2004, while imports rose only 8 percent to 161,900 units. Most of the
exports are cheap, low-end models destined for developing markets, often from smaller manufacturers who are at a
disadvantage in the competitive domestic Chinese market.
Two of the biggest exporters will be familiar to
Autoblog readers – Geely Automobile Holdings Co. and Chery Automobile. Both have plans in the works to export to the
U.S. market. Geely, an exhibitor at this year’s Detroit Auto Show, plans to export 1.33 million cars a year by 2015. In
2005, its exports totalled 7,000 units.
Massive investment by foreign automakers in the Chinese market will
triple capacity to more than 7 million cars by 2008. It may not be long before the Chinese operations of GM, Ford and
VW are exporting to the U.S. and Europe.