"Volvo to export sedan made in China to US" by Keith Bradsher, New York Times January 13, 2015
NEW YORK — After years of promises followed by manufacturing delays, a major automaker finally appears on the verge of beginning sustained exports from China to the United States.
The Volvo Car Corp. revealed at the Detroit auto show Monday that it planned to begin shipping a mid-size sedan from Chengdu in the next several months. Volvo, which a Chinese investor bought from Ford Motor Co. in 2010, said it would ship 1,500 to 2,000 cars to the United States this year, with increases in subsequent years based on demand.
Volvo already makes the same model, the S60 Inscription sedan, for the Chinese market, although under a different name, the S60L. It sells about 26,000 cars there, so Volvo can add production for the US market at a modest cost.
Li Shufu, a self-made automotive tycoon, owns a controlling stake in Geely Auto and separately owns Volvo through his personal holding company. Li has talked for a decade of exporting cars from China to the United States, and Geely Auto has repeatedly said that it would like to undertake its own exports.
These plans have been consistently delayed. Geely initially struggled with quality issues, and the Chinese government had warned its automakers not to export until they were completely ready to meet Western quality and safety standards. The global financial crisis and the long slowdown it produced in the American auto market further delayed Geely and Li.
Volvo already has a reputation for quality and for safety, making it easier for Li to allay the Chinese government’s concerns. Several years ago, China’s commerce ministry set 2015 as its goal for China to begin exporting cars to the West.
China is already a major supplier of low-cost auto parts to assembly plants and car repair shops in the United States. But its exports of fully assembled cars have been negligible, even as China has emerged as the world’s largest auto market and largest assembler of cars.
Volvo, which is still based in Sweden, said its Chengdu factory was just as good as its European factories.
“Levels of installed technology and equipment are the same as the company’s European facilities, as are the working environment, safety and environmental performance standards,” Volvo said.
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