Great Wall Motor Co Ltd, China's largest maker of sportutility vehicles and pick-up trucks, plans to add more than 10 models, including compact cars, by 2010 in a bid to almost quadruple its auto sales.
"Our sales targets are very conservative as we have a lot of new models in the pipeline," Deputy General Manager Bai Xuefei said by phone on We d n e s d ay f r o m t h e company's headquarters in Baoding City in Hebei Province.
Vehicle sales may reach 400,000 in 2010, including 200,000 cars, from an expected 110,000 this year, he added.
The auto maker plans to begin selling its first compact, the GWPeri, next month as it aims to win a greater share of the world's second-largest auto market by introducing cheaper and more fuel-efficient vehicles.
The company's Hover SUV costs about four times more than Chery Automobile Co's QQ, China's bestselling compact, Bloomberg News said.
"Great Wall can boost vehicle sales by adding cars, but the compact segment is really competitive," said Vivien Chan, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Sun Hung Kai Securities Ltd. "Every company faces rising pressure to offer price cuts and new models." Great Wall plans to add a new model every three or four months until 2010, Bai said.