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As General Motors heads toward insolvency, the company that was once the biggest on the planet is still riding high in the world’s most populous country.
As the storied American company prepares to financially dismantle its operations between good and poor performing assets, GM China is becoming the crown jewel in the company’s operations.
“If there’s a good GM and a bad GM, China is definitely going to be in the good GM side,” said Michael Dunne, an auto analyst and managing director of J.D. Power and Associates China…
Industry analysts say the decision is a simple matter of dollars and cents: GM is now the third-biggest car manufacturer in China, which has recently overtaken the U.S. as the world’s largest car market…
“Our business is run as separate joint-ventures here in China in partnership with SAIC … so we’re profitable, we fund our own investment and we would be largely independent of any action that took place in the US,” said Kevin Wale, president and managing director of GM China.
“It seems as though they have enough going on out here that they will remain insulated from the bankruptcy back home,” adds Dunne. “I see GM weathering the storm in Asia and holding on to what they’ve accomplished here and being able to ride it out here.”
Most popular GM car in China? Buick.
The Chinese have different buying preferences and they don’t have strangling labor policies/unions to deal with.
Frankly Buicks are the best GM cars period in terms of reliability, so it’s not surprising that Chinese who don’t have the preconceived notions about brands would choose it.
China fosters a MUCH friendlier business climate than does the US. Oddly, they realize that businesses actually employ others and poor people don’t employ others. AMAZING!
#3, It’s worth considering why it is that we pass laws to prevent firms from colluding to “protect consumers,” while at the very same time, with firms being the consumers of labor, we do everything we can to encourage collusion in the labor market.
It’s also funny to me, but not surprising, that in an environment with increasing unemployment, the first thing Obama and the Democrats in Congress did was work to increase the power of labor unions.
# 4 Sea Lawyer said, “It’s also funny to me, but not surprising, that in an environment with increasing unemployment…”
Well, without victims to promise money from the gov’t to, the Dems have no base. Why do they support Teachers Union who are ruining the schools? Uneducated people can’t earn a living and must rely on Gov’t (Dem) handouts…
::sigh::
well.. i guess the rumors are true..
the U.S of A is a corporation that is going through a quiet bankruptcy. -and they’re slowly dismantling her main assets, winding them down to her main creditors..
so i guess, the only question that remains is, once they disarm us, who gets to claim it’s people? -since we are bonded assets of said corp since birth..
::sigh:::
i shoulda stayed in bed.
-s
#5, yes, well considering there has been pretty extensive work showing that unionization actually increases unemployment, it should also not be surprising that the government sector is the only one where union popularity has actually maintained itself, since productivity and efficiency are the least of the priorities in a government bureaucracy.
Well they are killing off the cars that GM does a decent job selling, and having it enter markets where it does a poor job. Good luck selling those compact cars with higher labor costs.
#6 ALfred.. As usual, you’re full of shit.
China is booming because they are and have been an emerging economy like India and Brazil. It has nothing to do with regulations.
You should stick with religious fantasy and claims of morality above others. That is where your true comedic value lies.
GM is also saying it is profitable and will go on after GM USA goes down.
[Duplicate comment deleted. Please don’t double post! – ed.]
# 11 Dallas said, “China is booming because they are and have been an emerging economy …”
Umm, their economy is “emerging” because they are business friendly. Duh.
What was “different” about China during the Mao years? Why didn’t business prosper/grow/emerge then?
I’m guess because of the regulatory environment, more specifically, under Mao business was state controlled and over regulated?
But what is the “purpose” of business? In the long run, unregulated business is just as bad as over regulated business.
Finding balance in life/society is a bitch for people. Zealotry is so much more favored.
#14 No dear. China and India are emerging because they are emerging markets. The people there are just now buying their first microwave oven. Trust me, I’m an expert in this department or do some research on what makes an emerging market, an emerging market.
#16–Dallas==we are cross posting here just a bit, but surely you recognize that the regulatory scheme in place as some effect on whether or not a market can emerge?
And isn’t China a terrific example of that?
I am also in mind of Greece who had a stagnant economy because there was no credit system. Then ((I forget how)) their society introduced more of a standard western banking system that gave loans and credit and their society took off or emerged.
Surely, we should give Patrick credit for the one thing in a month he has gotten right?
# 16 Dallas said, “No dear. China and India are emerging because they are emerging markets.”
ROFL.
As long as Barry lets the Corvette live it is OK with me. The only well made car in GM’s line.
#19, /nod
Buick is popular in China, not seeing it die anytime soon. Hell, they even have small cars there with Buick branding. Where are they here in the US?
And Ford, bring the Focus RS to US dammit!! 🙂 The 2010 model selling this year that is heheh
yes, the most popluar brand in china is the buick. I think it’s because chairman Mao used to own one and everyone there sees that as the status symbol to try and achieve. And the greatest growth brand worldwide?? chevy….things may be looking up after all!
The only reason the Cadillac isn’t more popular then the Buick is it sounds like an eye problem. (yeah politically incorrect but it’s just a joke!)
Out of control unions, bad for business. UAW has caused their own death by bleeding GM dry.
Just one year ago…
Strike Cost $2 Billion In Q2 Alone
Wages are 4X out of proportion to other jobs requiring high school education.
The UAW, Company management, and government policies all have combined to make GM America fail.
The question is can we change our ways and as yet I don’t see much evidence of it.
#26 – GetSmart
Obviously you’ve never been to China.
These last couple of years Chevys have been showing up here in Spain. Unfortunately they’ve been making the same mistake as Ford has. For some reason the never try to sell the american models – probrably because they manufacture them in europe. American sport models, and designs probrably would have sold great over here especially the SUV’s. Instead they got this preconcieved idea that europeans need european styling, and they crank out these boxy little models they couldn’t give away much less sell.
Don’t the Chinese hate Japan with a passion? It is in all their kung fu movies.
Surely Obama will force GM to export the UAW to China and bring Chinese worker protection standards up to those in the USA.
That should take care of any success.
#16 Dallas:
“Trust me, I’m an expert in this department”
Yeah, I’m going to trust that some nickname in a blog comment is an ‘expert.’
If you’re unwilling to back this up with say, a link to your website featuring your real name and CV, you can’t say that you’re ‘an expert.’
Sorry.
#31 Yes. My mommy says I’m an expert so don’t bother doing your own research. Just listen to me.
It’s just like the recession of the early 1990s. Worldwide, GM sold the most cars and lost the most money for any manufacturer. That to me doesn’t sound like a market share problem.
GM may file for bankruptcy on Monday, June 1, 2009. GM stated again and again for months that it was not going to file for bankruptcy.
Question: Did the federal government lose money by trying to bail them out when it would have been much cheaper if they filed months ago?
#29 – MikeN – Don’t the Chinese hate Japan with a passion?
I’m sure they do.