Denway Motors said on Tuesday that its joint venture with Honda Motor still plans to launch its new small sedan model in late September, Dow Jones reported.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
The venture, Guangzhou Honda Automobile Co., said last month it would delay the launch of the Fit [Jazz] sedan by more than a month, to late September, because the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome prevented Japanese technicians from visiting China, the news agency noted, adding that the car company said idle capacity would be used to produce more of the company’s popular high-end Accord sedans.
In view of strong market demand for the Accord, some analysts had speculated the venture may allow the Fit’s production schedule to slip again, Dow Jones added.
However, Dow Jones said, the company executives noted after the company’s annual general meeting that the schedule won’t be adjusted.
“We don’t have plans for further delay because it is part of our strategy to capture a growing market share,” Denway Motors director Zheng Qing Hong told Dow Jones.
The venture has said it aims to diversify its line of models by introducing the Fit this year to tap China’s fast-growing low-end sedan market, the news agency noted.
