Chery Automobile: moves forward with joint venture projects with foreign partners

 Chery Automobile, established in 1997 in Wuhu City, Anhui Province, is the largest Chinese proprietary brand automotive manufacturer in China. Operating under five brands, Chery, Cowin, Riich, Rely and Karry, the company is a regular winner in the Chinese proprietary brand passenger car sales race.

 Chinese automakers experienced a sluggish business overall in the Chinese proprietary brand passenger car market in 2011. Chery Automobile, too, saw a 5.9 percent year-on-year decline in its vehicle sales to 642,000 units. Nevertheless, the company maintained its market share and won the vehicle sales race for eleven years in a row in that market.

 Chery Automobile was active from 2011 to early 2012 in promoting joint venture operations with foreign companies. In November 2011, its joint venture company formed with Israel Corporation announced a new brand, Qoros, intending to launch its models under the brand in European markets. In March 2012, Chery Automobile and Jaguar Land Rover reached an agreement on establishing a joint venture company in China.

 Chery Automobile is also active in exploring overseas markets in the forms of export and knockdown (KD) production. In 2011, the company began exporting its products to Australia to gain a foothold in Western markets. The company became the first Chinese manufacturer to build a complete knockdown (CKD) plant in Brazil where demand is growing steadily. Chery Automobile exported 159,000 vehicles in 2011, up 72.8 percent from the previous year, and earned the top place in the passenger car export market for nine years in a row.