SAIC Motor’s subsidiary Anji leads Chinese auto exports, shipping 600,000 vehicles globally

Anji, a logistics subsidiary of SAIC Motor, recently dispatched its Ro-Ro cargo vessel, Phoenix, loaded with around 1,000 MG vehicles, from Ningde, a city in East China’s Fujian province, to the Mexican port city of Lazaro Cardenas. The maiden voyage of 13,500 kilometers is expected to take 23 days and will reduce transportation time by “three to five days” compared to the previous method of transporting vehicles from SAIC’s Ningde plant to Shanghai and then shipping them. The popularity of Chinese vehicles in overseas markets has been increasing, and Anji shipped over 600,000 SAIC vehicles to global destinations, including Europe and North America, in 2022. According to Wang Zemin, President of Anji, the company’s shipments will reach 160,000 units in the first quarter of 2023, a 25 percent increase year-on-year. SAIC has been China’s largest vehicle exporter for seven years in a row, exporting 1.02 million vehicles in 2022, 45.9 percent more than the previous year, with 65 percent of them being SAIC’s own brands, mainly MG and Maxus. The executive vice-president of SAIC International, Zhao Aimin, expects the number of SAIC vehicles sold overseas to reach 1.2 million this year, with Europe, the Middle East, and Mexico being the major markets, and up to 70 percent of the products being SAIC’s own brands. SAIC’s success in overseas markets is attributed to its understanding of local customers’ demands and the competitive products it offers. The company’s focus on research and development has resulted in the successful launch of the MG4 Electric hatchback, which has received top ratings in new car quality programs in different regions, including the European New Car Assessment Program. The model has become a hit in Europe, and Zhao expects overseas sales to reach 150,000 units this year. SAIC is developing three to four models for global markets to follow by late 2024 or early 2025. Zhao believes that a sustainable and healthy sales network is crucial to the success of China-made vehicles overseas. He emphasized the importance of listening to the voice of salespeople and offering great products to customers while enabling local dealers to make money.