December 18, 2008

One of the top three U.S. carmakers has opened a new manufacturing plant in northeast China with its China partner SAIC Motor.

The new plant, located in the city of Shenyang, will begin operations in the second quarter of 2009 and have an annual production capacity of 150,000 units.

China is a bright spot for the U.S. carmaker, which is committed to ongoing expansion in that country, noted an executive with the company.

Meanwhile, the WTO ruled this week that China’s tariffs on imported car parts are not consistent with global trade rules.

A report by Agence France-Presse states that China imposes an import duty of 25 percent on whole vehicles and only 10 percent on auto parts. China has said the rules aim to prevent tax evasion by companies that import whole cars as spare parts to avoid higher tariff rates.

However, the U.S. argued that the measure puts pressure on foreign auto parts producers to re-locate their manufacturing facilities to China and discourages car makers in China from using foreign auto parts in the assembly of vehicles.