Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor is planning to develop a plant in Mexico or the United States, the company’s chairman stated, however added that an unpredictable policy environment implied the details of the strategy were still in flux.
Reuters reported previous month that Great Wall, which is China’s largest SUV and pickup maker, was considering a car plant in two Mexican states hit by U.S. President Donald Trump’s drive to make American companies invest in their home country.
The automaker’s chairman Wei Jianjun said the company had taken a look at three possible states in Mexico and two states in the United States. He included that substantial shifts in U.S. policy were having a large influence on the strategies for the plant.
“Our plans to go to the American market have not altered,” he informed reporters on the sidelines of a conference in Shanghai. “Initially we want to see how things work and after that decide.”
Under pressure from U.S. President Trump to maintain jobs in the United States, some automakers have scaled back or cut plans to construct plants in Mexico. Ford Motor in January canceled a $1.6 billion plant in San Luis Potosi.
A senior Great Wall Motor executive informed Reuters before that the choice between setting up plants in the United States or Mexico places would depend on trade issues including the United States, Mexico and China.
Wei said Great Wall would develop plants in Russia in addition to North America. He included the firm intended to sell 100,000 cars worldwide by 2020, up from 20,000-30,000 vehicles now.
