GM showing first signs of sales growth in China in two years

General Motors Co (GM) (N: GM) said Monday that the ongoing market rebound from the COVID-19 crisis helped its Chinese vehicle sales grow 12% year over year in July-September, marking the first Chinese quarterly revenue growth in the Detroit automaker for two years. The second largest foreign automaker in China by units - after the German Volkswagen AG (DE: VOWG\_p) - said on Monday that it had delivered 771,400 vehicles in China in the third quarter. This was followed by a 5% decline in the second quarter when parts of China were still about to pull away from virus-fighting measures. GM has a Shanghai-based joint venture with SAIC Motor Corp Ltd (SS: 600104) that makes Buick, Chevrolet and Cadillac vehicles. Another joint venture, SGMW, with SAIC and the Guangxi Automobile Group produces no-frills vans and has started manufacturing high-end cars. Sales of mass-market brand Buick vehicles rose 26% in the third quarter compared to the same period last year, while sales of premium brand Cadillac vehicles rose 28%, GM said in a statement. Sales of its mass-market Chevrolet brand were down 20%. Sales of the no-frills Wuling brand rose 26%, while sales of Baojun vehicles for the mass market decreased 19%. "GM's compact models were making a return to four-cylinder engines, and that contributed to sales growth," said Alan Kang, senior analyst at LMC Automotive, referring to an attempt to bring cleaner but louder three-cylinder versions to market. "Cadillac also has a more complete offering this year. China's largest auto manufacturers association expects total double-digit year-over-year growth in auto sales for July-September. Manufacturers such as Toyota Motor Corp (T: 7203), Honda Motor Co Ltd (T: 7267) and Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd (HK: 0175) saw sales jump in the quarter just ended. GM has seen its sales in China suffer in a crowded market and a slowing economy. To get its business going again, the company plans to have electric vehicles (EVs) account for over 40% of new models in China over the next five years, where the government is promoting greener cars. The automaker's Wuling Hong Guang MINI EV, a two-door micro-two-door model with a starting price of 28,800 yuan ($ 4,200), was China's top-selling electric car in August. GM's sales fell 15% year over year to 3.09 million vehicles in 2019. The automaker delivered 3.65 million vehicles in 2018 and 4.04 million in 2017.