Volvo November sales soar 69% in China

Updated: 2013-12-11 16:49

(cnautonews.com)

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Volvo Car Corp said November vehicle sales in China jumped 69 percent in November to 5,995 units on strong demand for its XC60 SUV.

The company said China was its biggest global market last month, eclipsing Sweden and the United States.

"Sweden and China are very strong, Europe shows a positive trend and in the US we now have the right tools to get back on track," sales and marketing chief Alain Visser said in a statement.

The automaker, which lost money in the first half of the year, is banking on a rapid expansion in China to help it to double global sales to 800,000 cars by 2020.

Volvo, which was purchased by Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co in 2010, is preparing for a major expansion in China.

Last month, Volvo's plant in the southwest China city of Chengdu launched full-scale output. The plant will produce up to 120,000 vehicles annually.

The Chengdu facility's first production model is the stretched Volvo S60 sedan, which debuted last month at the Guangzhou auto show.

Volvo's second Chinese plant is located in the northeast city of Daqing. That plant -- a 30-70 joint venture between Volvo and Geely -- will begin production late this year with an annual output of 80,000 vehicles.