General Motors Prepares to Grow Further in China

[Josh]

General Motors Prepares to Grow Further in China

Relaunch Cadillac Brand
Expand Two Manufacturing Facilities
Engage in Vehicle Financing
Premiere GM Tech Tour
Shanghai - General Motors Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner announced today in Beijing the company's ambitious plans to expand its presence and maintain its strong growth in China.

GM will relaunch the Cadillac luxury nameplate as both an import and domestically assembled brand. The automaker also will expand its Shanghai GM and SAIC-GM-Wuling manufacturing facilities, both of which will soon be in need of additional capacity to meet rising customer demand. In addition, GM plans to engage in vehicle financing and bring its GM Tech Tour to China.

"We are excited about expanding our presence in China in order to keep up with the rising demand for vehicles, especially passenger cars," said Wagoner. "GM remains focused on offering the right products in the right segments at the right time. Our latest actions will enable us to take advantage of existing opportunities and position us for long-term success in the world's fastest-growing vehicle market."

Cadillac
GM is bringing its American luxury brand, Cadillac, back to China in 2004. GM will offer both imported products and products assembled at its flagship joint venture with Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation Group (SAIC), Shanghai GM. GM plans to build a select network to distribute and service Cadillac products in China.

Shanghai GM Expansion
Shanghai GM, which has become one of China's leading domestic automakers through the support of its parent companies, is expanding its primary manufacturing facility in Shanghai.

The plant expansion, which will take the joint venture's total production capacity to 300,000 vehicles per year, is expected to be ready for vehicle production by the end of 2005.

SAIC-GM-Wuling Expansion
The expansion of SAIC-GM-Wuling will give GM's mini-vehicle joint venture with SAIC and Wuling Automotive an additional 150,000 units of annual capacity, increasing total capacity to 336,000 units per annum.

The expansion of the joint venture in Liuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, will feature stamping, body, paint and general assembly shops. It is expected to be ready to begin production in 2006.

Automotive Financing
GM and a local partner plan to submit an application to begin offering automotive financing as soon as the operational implementation procedures governing financing are published, which is expected to happen shortly.

On October 3, China's Banking Regulatory Commission moved a step closer to allowing foreign companies to engage in financing when it issued the Administrative Rules Governing Auto Financing Companies.

GM Tech Tour
GM is debuting its revolutionary Hy-wire and HydroGen3 fuel cell concept vehicles, as well as other industry-leading fuel cell and hybrid propulsion technology in China at the GM Tech Tour.

During the two-day event, which begins in Beijing on November 18, GM will host a series of technical workshops and ride and drive programs. It also will showcase its blueprint for a hydrogen economy, which is aimed at taking the motor vehicle out of the development equation.

"GM will continue to expand both our vehicle portfolio and range of services in order to meet the changing needs of our customers," said Phil Murtaugh, Chairman and CEO of the General Motors China Group. "At the same time, we will continue to utilize our Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center (PATAC) joint venture in Shanghai to tailor our products to the domestic market while availing all of our partners and local operations of the best resources that the entire GM Group has to offer."

"This is all part of our strategy for becoming better, faster and stronger, and contributing to the healthy development of China's automotive industry," said Murtaugh.

General Motors, the world's largest vehicle manufacturer, designs, builds and markets cars and trucks worldwide, and has been the global automotive sales leader since 1931. GM employs about 340,000 people around the world, including approximately 10,000 in China. It operates five joint ventures and two wholly owned foreign enterprises in China. In all, GM today has manufacturing operations in 32 countries and its vehicles are sold in more than 190 countries. In 2002, GM sold more than 8.6 million cars and trucks, nearly 15 percent of the global vehicle market.

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more info on www.gm.com