Mitsubishi Motors Aims To Make 270,000 Cars In China 2007

TOKYO April 13, 2003; Dow Jones reported that Mitsubishi Motors Corp. aims to achieve annual production of about 270,000 Mitsubishi Motors-brand cars in China in 2007, up sharply from the 80,000 units produced there in 2002, the Japanese carmaker said Monday.

Mitsubishi Motors expects China, along with the U.S., to be one of the major contributors to its overall sales volume as the company continues to post poor sales in Japan after the revelation three years ago of a decades-long cover-up of product defects at the company hurt consumer trust in the automaker.

The company, in which DaimlerChrysler AG holds a 37.3% stake, expects its China business to account for 15%-20% of Mitsubishi Motors' total sales volume by 2013.

The Japanese carmaker is studying various ways to create additional capacity in China, such as constructing a new plant, a Mitsubishi Motors spokesman said.

China's auto market is growing strongly, in line with the country's expanding economy and increasing personal-income levels.

Earlier this year, Mitsubishi Motors started making its "Pajero Sport" sports utility vehicle at Beijing Jeep Corp., a joint venture between DaimlerChrysler and Beijing Automotive Industry.

Mitsubishi Motors wants its production in China to eventually cover all passenger-car segments, possibly including the recently launched "Colt" for the compact segment, he said.

Through increased local production, as well as continued exports from Japan, Mitsubishi Motors aims to lift its annual sales volume in China to 300,000 units in 2007 from 120,000 units in 2002, the company spokesman said.

Mitsubishi Motors and DaimlerChrysler are in the process of expanding their dealer network in China.

If Mitsubishi Motors achieves its China production goals, its output there could rival that of Toyota Motor Corp. (TM or 7203), which in 2002 posted global sales volume about four times the size of Mitsubishi Motors'.

Toyota targets annual production of 300,000 to 400,000 vehicles by 2010 at its China joint venture with FAW Group Corp.