Great Wall Motor abandons JV in Russia

Chinese private carmaker Great Wall Motor Co., Ltd. said it has abandoned its joint venture (JV), the Great Wall Alabuga Motor Open Joint Stock Co., in Russia. Specializing in vehicle and auto parts production and distribution, this JV was designed to turn out 50,000 Gwperi sedans per year. Previously, Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd. and Chery Automobile Co., Ltd. successively withdrew from their own JVs in Russia, focusing on exports to Russia in the future. Chery Automobile and Great Wall Motor separately sold 1,032 and 585 vehicles in Russia in August 2008, but 10 months later, their sales volume dropped down to 967 and 388 units, respectively. (November 26, 2008)