Ford cements top auto position
5 July 2006
Sales from China's two largest automakers surged in the first half of the year. The boom cemented GM's position as the mainland's top seller, the Financial Times reported, but it was particularly important for number two Volkswagen. The German company saw sales shoot up 31% after two years of declining revenues in a market it once controlled. GM saw sales of passenger cars shoot up 49%, beyond the 20% target it had set. The figures underlined the growth of the Chinese market where falling prices have coincided with rising consumer confidence, the newspaper reported. GM sold a total of 453,832 passenger vehicles compared to 345,375 for Volkswagen.