SAIC Group is developing in Europe but declining in China
- The Chinese group SAIC (Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation) created in 1995 has quickly become the largest Chinese carmaker thanks to its GM and VW productions under license, surpassing the FAW (First Automobile Works) and SAW (Second Automobile Works) groups which became Dongfeng. But SAIC has also its own brands since 2005, most of which come from the former British group British Leyland, such as Roewe(derivated from Rover), MG and Maxus (derivated from LDV ex-Leyland DAF Vehicles).
- SAIC initially distributed its Roewe, MG and Maxus on the Chinese market but then decided to expand the scope of its sales to the European market. In Europe, MG has quickly become the best-selling Chinese brand, with 50,000 sales in 2021, 111,000 in 2022 and 230,000 in 2023, doubling its sales volume each year.
- SAIC has therefore acquired a favorable position in Europe, not to mention the 10,000 additional sales of Maxus in Europe in 2023.
- However, its position is less favorable in China, with a 17% drop in sales in the first seven months of 2024, a drop that is increasing from month to month, as it was -15% at the end of June, -14% at the end of May, -12% at the end of April. The negative gap between the sales volume in the first seven months of 2024 compared to the first seven months of 2023 is 100,000 units. And this gap must be placed in the context of a Chinese market that is currently occupied 63% by Chinese brands instead of 55% in 2023. SAIC's (MG-Roewe-Maxus) market share has thus gone from 4% of the Chinese market last year to 3% this year.