GERMAN industrial powerhouse ThyssenKrupp AG expects sales in China to grow an average 10 percent annually over the next five to 10 years, fueled by elevators, automotive parts and industrial services, its China operations senior executive said yesterday.
The steel business, which accounts for more than half of its sales in the market, is expected to fall below the overall average growth rate as it is unlikely the company will make any further large-scale investment due to policy limits over foreign companies' participation in the sector.
The government bars overseas firms from taking a majority stake in steel production companies, while they are allowed to control steel processing firms.
"When the opportunity is good we will continue to expand," said Alfred Wewers, president and chief executive officer of ThyssenKrupp China, after a briefing in Shanghai.
An expansion in production capacity would help the company export from China, where present output is mostly for domestic customers, he said.
The plans may include new plants for elevators and escalators. The company imports many of these products from its overseas plants for use in China, sometimes "at the request of customers," although it has two Chinese mainland factories.
China installs 60,000 elevators and escalators every year, accounting for 20 percent of the global market.