Great Wall Motor, the major player in sport utility vehicles in China, is now turning to potential customers abroad for its next phase of growth, a media report said.
The Baoding city-based automaker will initially focus on countries such as Russia and those in the Middle East that have similar regulations as China, founder and chairman Wei Jianjun told Bloomberg in Hong Kong on Monday.
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The company will build its vehicles in Russia, with a factory capable of rolling out 80,000 vehicles annually set to start operations in 2019, he said. Plans to sell cars in the US starting 2021 are also on the cards, he said, according to Bloomberg.
Current US import duties are still competitive and any future adverse changes may prompt his company to review its plans for the US, Wei said.
Media has been reporting today that the US has written to China, asking for a number of trade measures including reducing the 25% tariff levied on US cars imported into China.
Bloomberg noted Great Wall reported on Friday its profit fell by 52% last year to CNY5.03bn (US$796 million) as it spent more on incentives and discounts to help secure market share.
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