Geely reveals Volvo China production plans
Published: 1 May 10 12:14 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/26404/20100501/
Chinese car maker Geely plans to begin production in China of Volvo S60 cars and XC90 SUVs once it completes the purchase of the Swedish brand from US auto giant Ford.
- Bildt welcomes China's new Arctic Council status (15 May 13)
- EU green lights Volvo and Dongfeng merger (8 May 13)
- Volvo posts biggest loss since financial crisis (25 Apr 13)
"By assembling in China we can bring down the cost of the Volvo models," he said, indicating that further models could soon follow.
Geely had previously made known its intention to examine the option of widespread Volvo production in China.
"Our low cost position will benefit Volvo while it will continue to be a premium brand," said Daniel Dai.
Zhejiang Geely Holding signed a deal at the end of March to buy Volvo Cars from Ford. The US car maker agreed to sell its Volvo unit for $1.8 billion, less than a third of the $6.4 billion Ford paid for Volvo Cars in 1999.
Daniel Dai expects the final paperwork to be signed in four to five months.
Volvo Cars already has a production facility in China, where it has linked up with local firm Chang'an Automoble to make S40 cars and a version of the S80 sedan.
Volvo has 22,000 employees worldwide, including 16,000 in Sweden.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
Stockholm riots: a view from the street in Husby
Following three nights of violence that left cars smouldering in several Stockholm suburbs, The Local travelled to the northwest district of Husby where the disturbances began to see how the riots have affected local residents. READ () »
Bergman auction canned after suspected theft
An auction of memorabilia belonging to Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Berman has been scrapped by authorities after claims the items were stolen from the family. READ () »
Stockholm man lay dead in flat for two years
Workmen in southern Stockholm found the body of man who may have lain dead in his flat for over two years, with the police blaming the belated discovery on society's broken social networks. READ () »
Fashion prize turns Rookies into players
Swedish designers who fight for brand-name recognition in the notoriously hard-to-crack fashion business tell The Local's Victoria Hussey about the importance of the Swedish Rookies Award. READ () »
Four jailed for drugging internet date victims
Four thieves who used internet dating sites to find victims who they then robbed after drugging them with a concoction of sedatives and psychosis drugs were sentenced to prison on Wednesday by a Swedish court. READ () »
Doc went on holiday as Swede's cancer spread
A Swedish man has been left facing death after his doctor went on holiday, leaving a cancer diagnosis stranded in the computer system while the increasingly desperate patient fought for help elsewhere. READ () »
Thirty fires in third night of Stockholm riots
Police arrested eight people on Tuesday night as thirty cars were torched across southern and western Stockholm, in what was the third consecutive night of unrest in the Swedish capital. READ () »
Swedish 'serial killer' cleared of two murders
A man long referred to as Sweden's most notorious serial killer after being convicted of eight murders has been cleared of two more of the killings, prosecutors announced on Tuesday. READ () »
- 22/05 Stockholm riots: a view from the street in Husby »
- 22/05 Stockholm man lay dead in flat for two years »
- 22/05 Swedish 'serial killer' cleared of two murders »
- 22/05 Thirty fires in third night of Stockholm riots »
- 21/05 Seven arrested over Stockholm's Husby riots »
- 21/05 Body parts found in missing woman search »
- 21/05 Defamation charges for Instagram 'slut-shaming' »
- 21/05 Former Saab CEO arrested for tax crimes »
- 21/05 Fresh clashes as more cars burn in Husby »
- 20/05 Riot police 'resorted to racial slurs' in Husby »
More news from Germany at thelocal.de
- 22/05 Femen mock writer's suicide at Notre Dame »
- 22/05 France to spend €20m on embassy security »
More news from France at thelocal.fr
More news from Norway at thelocal.no
- 22/05 Lausanne scientists unlock clues to ageing »
- 22/05 Puerto Rican banker vies for top Olympic job »
More news from Switzerland at thelocal.ch
In cooperation with DoToday
Register now for:
> Free use of noticeboard
> Special discounts
> Weekly news roundup
> Unlimited use of discuss
"A week full to the brim with LFC football…. Div 5 LFC match against Nåjdens FK has been moved. This is due to the Svenska Cupen final: 26 May, 17.00 kick off, Nationalarenan Friends Arena, Solna. Next match is on Tuesday (see below). ………………………………………………………… Friday: Div5 Ladies: Rotebro IS FF – Långholmen FC (Skinnaråsens IP) KO: 16.15 ………………………………………………………… Saturday: Vets: Långholmen FC – IFK..." READ »
- 20/5 15:25 Hockey. Hockey. Hockey. (Boston Blatte)
- 16/5 08:32 Be British, be sincere and be bold (Brits Mean Business)
- 19/4 15:47 UK and Sweden sign Defence MOU (The Diplomatic Dispatch)
- 20:59 What has happened to TL?
- 20:30 Husby Riots and violence against the police...
- 20:15 An alternative on the menu
- 19:57 Investment market in Sweden
- 19:46 Living costs in London
- 19:46 I need a dentist, in Malmö?
- 18:50 Where do I find out if my massage qualifications
- 18:50 Restaurant Inspection Scores
- 17:49 Moving from Canada to Sweden
- 16:48 Lamination or Plastic surgery for Certificate
Individuals & Couples - Stockholm Beth Rogerson PhD - Clinical, Marriage & Family Therapist
Click or call 08-5580 1266 now
Create an account with Banc De Binary, the world’s most reputable binary options firm, and start cashing in today! You can start by practicing with our free $50,000 demo account.
www.bbinary.com
Expat counsellor & talk therapist offers counselling for stress, relationship issues, sexuality, culture adjustment & life coaching. Private & confidential. Stockholm or Skype. Contact me today! 08-559 22 636 or
CLICK HERE
Casa Birgitta in Algarve, Portugal. Reduced price in best location. Private estate on white sand beach. All amenities included. Book here today! edward_george1@hotmail.com
Find products and services that are specifically focused on English speakers living in Sweden!
FULL DETAILS
Your comments about this article:
The comments below have not been moderated in advance and are not produced by The Local unless clearly stated. Readers are responsible for the content of their own comments. Comments that breach our terms and conditions will be removed.
... What the Chinese know about premium brands you could write on the back of a postage stamp which is probably why they haven't got any of their own... Poor Volvo - I hope this is not as bad as it seems.
Being able to open a toolbox and being able to steward a brand are very different things.
I can't think of 1 strong Chinese brand with global reach inside or out of the automotive sector, can you?
A model here, a model there, and somewhere down the road, not one single Volvo will be built in Sweden.
But it will still say "VOLVO". That makes it Swedish, right?
Look out SAAB! Your ultimate fate can't be too far behind. Oh, but SAAB is still built in Sweden! They will never take SAAB out of Sweden!
If you really believe that, check up on SAAB again in, oh, say 10 years.
Google Huawei - www.huawei.com
All Chinese, huge brand - Global and very high quality
Say ... IKEA, Sony Ericsson, Tetra Pack for example.
you speak like a politican, if you are, be a good one, please figure out a solution to help the workers in Volvo.
Your comments misled people to believe that Volvo car is sill a Swedish car company, but the fact is not,
Volvo assemby in China?
New Saab owner is insolvent and using Saab to fund itself?
Banking crisis grows?
Poor, poor, Sweden.
You are optionally blind to iPhones, HP laptops or IKEA furniture etc. labeled "made in China", and also quality Chinese brands like Huawei. Call them slave labor or whatever you like, just remember that their iphones, laptops and furniture are made by these 'slaves', do hypocrites ever feel guilty of making them in China or buying these goods?
For China, being criticized or predicted to collapse for a long time, its economy still grows no matter you believe these statistics or not. Sadly, a lot of ppl here neither see this unusualness nor care what is really going on there, but being pathetically sarcastic.
This competitive world is changing, if you don't know the rules, you gonna lose the game. Probably, some ppl just enjoy being losers? Well, forgive my funny 'sarcasm'.
BTW, if you don't pay taxes to Sweden or you don't even live here, I think you have no rights to mock this country.
Part of being a strong global brand is that it should have recognition....
ingka
You are an idiot if you think that IKEA, Sony Ericsson, Tetra Pack are under Chinese stewardship.
Volvo used to be a Swedish Brand, built in Sweden
Then it became a US run company, mainly built in Sweden
Now it's a Chinese run company, and all Volvos will soon be built in China.
If you can think of a Chinese company making cars in China with a high quality, highly respected image abroad - then I'd love to know. Truth is, Geely don't really care - they can market Volvo as a car with a premium heritage to their own population of billions...why do they need sales abroad. Sweden sure won't be their target market.
I love Volvo, and Sweden, and what's happened here is principally through sheer ignorance of politicians, and businessmen who care only about their bottom line this year...because that's what gets them their fat bonuses.
Sorry folks, but Volvo as a world leading brand looks pretty much over.
And if you want evidence of the above - who's bought an MG since the Chinese bought them and transferred production to China? Did you even realise they still make them in their tens of thousands? Thought not.
especially if you don't care to read my comment. I wrote that most european brands actually produce in China (and by any means Swedish ones as well). Which means that the place of production is irrelevant to the brand and it's brand loading.
Political leadership has sold Sweden on fantacy....
Volvo will be a great auto company under a World Management concept in China.... Watch china build a Great Company,, you all better get it...Volvo will now have a way into the future..Saab ???? not good....
100% right.
China is a superpower in the making.
The country is growing at an enormous rate.
People should visit China and they will see that the dsays of ´no dogs, no chinese' on the lawns are long over.
Every city is full of skyscapers.
Every business is booming.
Compare that with UK, USA, Ireland, Spain, Italy, etc where a lot of business is on its knees.
China is not perfet, but it has come a long way and looks like going a lot further for the forseeable future.
Recognition where? Oh, you mean public recognition,huh? well, jo public generally sees what he/she wants to see or what the 'media' feeds them to see.
"Recognition"?? Follow the money - the money pouring into China from the West to buy chinese goods - that's the real recognition. The foreign exchange that has allowed China to rise from near abject poverty to being certainly more prosperous than ever before.
#2394040
Slave labour? Oh yeah, it is so different here and in America,huh? Well, now it is, but how many decades back do you need to go to find appalling work/life conditions in Europe and the USA. For that reason many left Sweden to go elsewhere. Any Swedish Volvo workers care to live in the increasingly prosperous and low tax areas of China?
The modern Volvo is innovative, looks beautiful, but is overpriced. Competing on the world stage is difficult, especially after Ford have ruined it's reliability reputation( 18 month old Volvos needing new shock absorbers???). And you are really worried that Geely can make it worse??
Take the blinkers off and recognise the realitiy.
Now if Swedish companies or investers can't buy or support Volvo/Saab at same price then it looks awkward to comment on those who are purchasing..
Is there anyone who havn't use a thing produced by "slave"?
and how many salary you can give to them when the average profit of factories is lower than 5%? and most profit is come to your westen pocket. taht is why you are not "slaves".
it is very sad to see them working with so low salary. and it is also very hard for china to do things in a west dominated world.
it is good to see many factories already think about future and start to set up reserach centers.not only rely on cheap labour.
good luck!
Strong brand awareness and positive perception creates desirability in consumer products and therefore allows you to sell intrinsically the same product at a higher price. I say again; name one broadly appealing, recognisable, Chinese brand...
And I don't follow your argument about 'following the money'. What an earth has deep pockets got to do with being able to steward a global brand? Whether you like it or not China is not synonymous with creating premium goods.
And I say recognisable to whom.The public,big business..who exactly?. As '#marinettes show" pointed out, brands like Huawei are not recognisable to the public but exist on a massive (and reliable) scale.Used by major Scandinavian telephone/internet companies, major undersea cable-laying requirements for governments/companies. As others point out on this blog,why would they need a 'recognisable brand' when they are busy making good quality product FOR a LOT of recognisable brands?
'Premium brands',as you call them - particularly in electronics, have long been 'sub-contracted for production' to Taiwan/China...like 25+ years! You bought an english tv, a german tv, only to find when you took the back off it had been assembled in Taiwan/China or the parts originated there.
For " is not synonymous" read "has not been synonymous", for the times they are a'changin! Creating premium quality goods - for others to sell undetr their own brand label - has been how the Chines have accumulated the money you so easily deride.Money has always been the key indicator of the success of any enterprise.
Why bother trying to make money with brand recognition when you are the ones manufacturing the goods? Brand labels are an enigma nowadays, most times you don't know where the heck it has come from! In this next decade we will see names like Geely/Volvo hitting the markets big time and,as is the situation now, we will all be buying - with or without the label.
I work for a major Swedish company that manufactures in Sweden and China (not cars though!) and other countries around the world.... and it is a worry that some senior managers tend to look at costs and profits. However at least at the moment there are level heads in control where I work.
Sweden and Swedish industry has evolved over the years to what we have today..... a country that has it's strengths based in technology, engineering and inovation. As long as we can keep these Sweden can retain it's reputation and competitive edge on the world .
You are not convincing me that you know anything about the power of a strong brand... Like millions of others I will pay a little extra for Nike trainers rather than some cheap no-name chinese brand even though they could easily be made in the same place and are of similar quality. But as ever the consumer will decide so we shall see.
Oh,forgive me spy,I didn't realise I needed to do a 'sales job' on you. I wasn't out to convince you of anything,simply hoping to allow your thoughts to wander from a narrow brand-indoctrinated view. Your trainers ARE produced in sweatshop chinese factories that do not meet reasonable standards for employment safety - (http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/sweatshops/nike/stillwaiting.html). That you are willing to pay extra to American shareholders for the priviledge of wearing the same shoe is,of course, a premium brand decision you are perfectly free to make.
So if you are not writing these posts to sell your point of view what are you writing them for? Therapy perhaps?
And yes I already made the point that Nike trainers could be made in China. But I find it amusing that after defending China you then go on to run down their industry - it's almost as if you don't know what you are talking about.
Google "VW GOL" (yes, without the "f"), a cheap VW made in Brasil and sold only in South America; I had one and the quality is much lower that the ones made in Europe. There are Mazda, Renault, and Toyota factories in Colombia and other South American countries making cars with the same quality of the French and Japanese brothers, but with the tecnology of 10+ years ago (no airbags, no power steering, no AC, no el. windows, etc) and they are sold in South America. It's not that they MOVED the production from France and Japan to South America.
Anyway, the fact the the very owner of the company is now Chinese makes one very worried about this things.