Qoros Refocuses on China Market

China's struggling Qoros Automotive Co. Ltd. is suspending plans to establish a presence in Europe and focusing on building sales in its home market, the Financial Times reports.

The five-year-old joint venture between Chery Automobile Co. and investment firm Israel Corp. has a factory in Changshu that can make 150,000 vehicles per year. But Qoros sold only 7,000 vehicles in 2014, including 51 in European test market Slovakia, according to the FT.

Qoros debuted its first car, the Qoros 3 midsize sedan, at the Geneva auto show in 2013. The car has attracted attention by earning top safety ratings in Europe and China. But CEO Phil Murtaugh, who took over in February, concedes that "nobody knows who Qoros is."

Murtaugh has launched a rebranding effort for the company. He also intends to expand the company's dealer network in China to about 150 this year from 78 in 2014.

Analysts tell the FT that product pricing has been a problem for the company. The Qoros 3 hatchback sells for about 120,000 yuan ($19,300) in China, 20% more than the equivalent Ford Focus five-door hatch.