- 2015 retail sales rise 5.2 percent to more than 3.6 million vehicles
- 2015 SUV retail sales more than double
- December retail sales reach all-time monthly high
SHANGHAI – General Motors and its joint ventures delivered a record 3,612,635 vehicles in China in 2015, which was up 5.2 percent from the previous high in 2014. China remained GM’s largest market in terms of retail sales.
An average of one vehicle was sold every 9 seconds and nearly 9,900 vehicles were sold each day last year. In December, GM and its joint ventures sold an all-time monthly record 445,227 vehicles in the domestic market, an increase of 14 percent on an annual basis.
“We expect to have increased our market share in 2015 through great products and our team’s relentless effort,” said GM Executive Vice President and President of GM China Matt Tsien. “We anticipate continued growth in 2016, as we plan to introduce 13 new and refreshed models starting with Cadillac’s all-new CT6 sedan later this month.”
The three segments that GM made a special focus in 2015 – MPVs, SUVs and luxury cars – all posted significant growth. GM’s MPV deliveries, led by the Buick GL8 and Baojun 730, were up 12 percent from a year earlier.
GM’s SUV deliveries in 2015 surged 144 percent on an annual basis, led by new models such as the Buick Envision and Baojun 560. The fast-growing SUV segment accounted for 13 percent of GM’s sales in China in 2015, compared with 5.6 percent a year earlier.
Rising Sales
The Cadillac luxury brand set a record for domestic sales, as demand increased 17 percent from 2014 to 79,779 units. The ATS and ATS-L experienced record sales of 30,752 units, which was up 172 percent from the previous year.
In 2015, Buick retail deliveries increased 12 percent on an annual basis to a record 989,167 units. The brand was led by the Excelle GT, whose sales were up 46 percent to 258,834 units. The Envision SUV followed, with sales of 147,093 units. The new Verano family got off to a strong start, with December sales of 12,053 units.
Baojun sales jumped 173 percent year on year to 463,532 units in 2015, an all-time high. The Baojun 730 MPV and Baojun 560 SUV were segment leaders.
Chevrolet sales in 2015 declined 9.7 percent year over year to 612,024 units, mainly due to model changeovers. Sales in 2016 are expected to improve with the arrival of several new models, including the Malibu XL and Cruze XL.
Wuling sales in the domestic market dropped 7.5 percent from 2014 to 1,464,900 units. The brand was impacted by continued contraction of the mini-commercial vehicle market.
Strong Presence
In 2015, GM and its joint ventures expanded their lineup. They introduced 12 new and refreshed models, including the all-new Buick Excelle GT sedan and Verano new-generation sports sedan, new Chevrolet Malibu mid-size sedan, Baojun 560 SUV and new Cadillac ATS-L luxury sport sedan.
GM continued growing its manufacturing presence as well. SAIC-GM opened its new Wuhan Branch and SAIC-GM-Wuling started production at the second phase of its Baojun plant in Liuzhou. On November 5, a groundbreaking ceremony was held in Shanghai for the new engineering center operated by the Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center (PATAC).
In addition, GM and its partner SAIC launched SAIC Motor Insurance Sales Co., Ltd. (INSAIC) – a joint venture that is providing insurance products to Buick, Cadillac and Chevrolet customers. This is making buying and owning a GM vehicle even more convenient.
Shanghai OnStar and SAIC-GMAC continued to expand their services and customer bases as well. Shanghai OnStar, which provides a range of in-vehicle safety, security and telematics services, reached a new industry high of nearly 1 million active subscribers. It introduced several new services such as OnStar 4G LTE, a wearable app, additional premium services and service packages, an upgraded mobile app and a WeChat service account. SAIC-GMAC, China’s first approved and operational automotive financing company, ended 2015 with nearly 2.4 million customers. It is providing service to 7,000 dealers in more than 350 cities.
Focus on Sustainable Development
GM maintained its support for a greener, safer, smarter and healthier community in China. The 2015 GM China Safe Kids Safe Ride program, in its second year, included 30 activities at kindergartens and primary schools in Beijing, Shanghai, Xiamen and Yantai. It also trained teachers at 30 kindergartens and shared a special Safe Kids Safe Ride video with 1,000 kindergartens. GM employees across China volunteered more than 2,300 hours of their time to support the program.
Based on the popular GM China Consumer Fuel-Saving Challenge that began in 2011, GM China’s new Green in Motion series showcased the fuel economy of products from the Buick, Chevrolet, Baojun and Cadillac brands.
A fleet of EN-V 2.0 electric concept vehicles went into service at Shanghai Jiao Tong University as part of a multi-modal campus transportation system alongside bicycles, cars and shuttle buses to help meet users’ “first mile, last mile” transportation needs.
GM also supported the establishment of a Partners for the Advancement of Collaborative Engineering Education (PACE) Center at Hunan University. GM and its partners donated software and hardware worth over $280 million to help train the next generation of automotive industry professionals.
As one of GM’s recent moves to gain a better understanding of urban mobility issues and insights into car-sharing user experiences, GM China introduced a carpooling pilot program for its employees based in Shanghai. This enables them to arrange rides together using a self-developed mobile app.
Note: Starting with April sales results in 2015, GM began reporting retail sales rather than wholesales in China. All numbers in the press release are retail sales.
