GM Posts 13% Sales Gain in China

General Motors Co. reports its vehicle sales in China climbed 13% to 491,700 units last month. Full-year sales rose 4% to a record 4.04 million units in 2017.

China has been GM’s largest national retail market since 2011. Last year’s volume there compares with 3.0 million vehicles the company sold in the U.S.

GM says its sales in China were bolstered by last year’s introduction of 18 new or updated models. The company notes that market demand for its widening array of SUV/crossover vehicles surged 37% in 2017.

Demand for Buick, the company’s best-selling brand in China, slightly surpassed the record 1.18 million units it sold there in 2016. Chevrolet deliveries in 2017 climbed 4% to 547,600 units. Sales of Cadillac luxury vehicles zoomed 51% to 175,500 units.

GM’s domestic Baojun brand saw annual volume jump 45% to 996,600 cars and SUVs in 2017. Sales by the company’s Wuling commercial mini-vehicle venture fell 16% to 1.14 million units in a contracting market.