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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.




  1. Sea Lawyer says:

    The Chinese have different buying preferences and they don’t have strangling labor policies/unions to deal with.

  2. Billy Bob says:

    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.

  3. Patrick says:

    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!

  4. Sea Lawyer says:

    #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.

  5. Patrick says:

    # 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…

  6. Alfred1 says:

    China is booming…they are what we were, capitalist without onerous and prohibitive regulations…so they are still growing…no recession…GM, if it can chuck Obama & crew…will do well there.

  7. soundwash says:

    ::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

  8. Sea Lawyer says:

    #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.

  9. soundwash says:

    ps..speaking of labour..

    they have now extended Unemployment
    a fourth time for 13 weeks.. -only, one condition now applies.

    -that you make at least two calls a week for a job, note who you called on a paper/chart provided and mail that in every month.

    *and* -that you accept a job that pays at least %80 of your previous job’s pay. (slick way of mandating a pay cut across the board)

    it is a nice gesture, esp given the amount of money congress has given away to the banksters..

    coupled with the one off $250 “bonus” payment they sent out to SSI and Disability recipients this past May, i see it as buying their votes for 2010.

    i’d bet a dollar that in 3 months, the next extension will offer a government job (which of course will take away your right to peaceful assembly to protest against, -against
    the government)

    -or worse, given that since your sitting around doing nothing, mandate you volunteer a portion your time
    to obama’s [optionally] armed, million man brown shirt militia..
    (to tame those unemployed
    that do not have any government nipple to suckle on, of course)

    yep..it’s becoming quite clear why they sent the bulk of the stimulus money back into the CorpGov.

    -s

  10. MikeN says:

    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.

  11. Dallas says:

    #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.

  12. Br says:

    GM is also saying it is profitable and will go on after GM USA goes down.

  13. Br says:

    [Duplicate comment deleted. Please don't double post! - ed.]

  14. Patrick says:

    # 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.

  15. bobbo says:

    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.

  16. Dallas says:

    #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.

  17. bobbo says:

    #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?

  18. Patrick says:

    # 16 Dallas said, “No dear. China and India are emerging because they are emerging markets.”

    ROFL.

  19. Brian says:

    As long as Barry lets the Corvette live it is OK with me. The only well made car in GM’s line.

  20. The0ne says:

    #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



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