Chinese consumers' continued preference for luxury brands could help make that country Cadillac's largest global market in the next five to 10 years, the head of General Motors China says.

 

GM produces many of its Cadillac models in China, which enables it to price those vehicles -- including the recently introduced XT5 crossover -- more aggressively against its imported competitors, said Matt Tsien, president of GM China.

 

China already is the world's largest market for Buick, and now represents 37 percent of GM's global sales. Last year, GM's China market share was 14.9 percent, which should remain steady or grow slightly as the overall market's annual sales climb to 30 million vehicles in 2020, Tsien said.

 

While industry sales are expected to grow 6 percent this year, luxury cars and crossovers are experiencing double-digit gains, he said, noting the Chinese government also is promoting greater investment in electrified vehicles.

 

GM, along with local partner SAIC, plans to launch more than 10 electrified vehicles in China by 2020, Tsien said, including plug-in hybrids and pure battery-electric vehicles. Those models will be sold by Chevrolet, Cadillac and Baojun, he said.

 

Asked if China could be an even larger market than the United States for the upcoming Chevrolet Bolt EV, Tsien said, "China is potentially a larger market for EVs, period."

 

GM will begin producing a plug-in hybrid version of the Cadillac CT6 in China this year, and that model will be exported to the United States.

 

Tsien would not confirm plans to offer a plug-in hybrid version of the China-built Buick Envision that goes on sale this summer in the United States.

 

But GM China showed a concept version of the Envision hybrid at last year's Shanghai show and U.S. supplier sources familiar with GM's plans say a production version could come to the United States as early as 2017.