Great Wall Motors enters Mexican market, Chinese cars gain market share in Mexico

Industrials Author: EqualOcean News Editor: Li Linglong; Peng Lina Sep 14, 2023 06:35 PM (GMT+8)

EqualOcean learned that on September 7, local time, with the theme of "Hello Tomorrow", the launching conference of Great Wall Motor's GWM brand and Haval H6 HEV was held in Mexico City, the capital of Mexico, marking Great Wall Motor's official entry into the Mexican market and the start of its operation.

1

Founded in 1998, Great Wall Motor Co., Ltd. specializes in vehicle and parts design, R&D, production, sales and service, and owns brands such as Haval(哈弗), WEY(魏牌), Ola(欧拉), Tank(坦克) and Great Wall Pickup Truck, etc. It is one of the largest manufacturers of SUVs and pickup trucks in China, and its production and sales network spreads all over the world.

Data on Great Wall Motor's official website shows that Great Wall Motor's sales network covers the world and has been exported to more than 170 countries and regions, with more than 700 overseas sales channels. In China, Great Wall Motor has set up 10 full-craft vehicle production bases; overseas, Great Wall Motor has set up three full-craft vehicle production bases in Russia, Thailand and Brazil, and has a number of KD factories in Ecuador, Pakistan and other places.

In August, sales of Haval, WEY and Tank brands grew highly year-on-year, with Haval realizing sales of 66,523 units, +31.99% year-on-year, and WEY realizing sales of 5,618 units, +81.75% year-on-year. The sales growth rate of Great Wall pickup truck and Ola brand remained solid.

EqualOcean checked AMDA's data and found that of the 743,930 light vehicles sold in the Mexican market from January to July this year, 142,090 were made in China, including Chinese and other brands. Nearly half of these vehicles (69,464 vehicles) came from Chinese automakers such as Chirey(奇瑞), JAC (江淮汽车), MG (名爵) and BAIC (北汽集团), while 72,626 vehicles were produced in China by other foreign automakers such as GM (通用汽车), which produces the Onix, Tornado, Captiva, and Aveo brands.

Global sales of new energy vehicles will grow 41% year-on-year in 2023, accounting for 16% of the total. China's sales grew 31% year-over-year, with a 38% share. European sales grew 48% year-over-year, with a 23% share. Sales in the U.S. grew 53% year-on-year, with a share of 9%. Great Wall Motor's overseas sales in January-August 2023 amounted to 181,678 units, with overseas sales accounting for 24.47% of the total.

Chinese-made cars have rapidly expanded their market share in Mexico this year, with Chinese brands especially gaining ground with their competitive prices, longer warranties and availability. AMDA(墨西哥汽车零售商协会) President Guillermo Rosales (吉列尔莫罗萨莱斯) recently said: "just two years ago, China-made cars have not reached 5% of domestic sales, and today, China-made cars have accounted for more than 25% of Mexican imports and 19.1% of total sales."

Mexico's high profit margins on manufacturing, its proximity to a well-developed infrastructure of commercial centers, and its high price competitiveness have attracted automakers such as General Motors(通用汽车), Ford(福特), and Chrysler(克莱斯特), Germany's Volkswagen(大众), and Japanese majors such as Nissan(日产), Honda(本田), and Toyota(丰田) to operate assembly plants in Mexico. Currently, 42 makes and 500 models of automobiles are produced in Mexico.

In the Top 50 best-selling cars in Mexico as of July 2023, Japanese manufacturer Nissan reports that 2 of its models are among the top 2. At the top of the list is the Nissan Versa, with 41,029 sales, and the Nissan NP300 is in second place with 36,200 sales. The Kia Rio is in 3rd place, ahead of the Chevrolet Aveo.