GM's decision must come as a surprise to other carmakers such as Ford and Renault, which have been expanding their business in India. "GM will cease sales of Chevrolet vehicles in the domestic market by the end of 2017. Existing Chevrolet customers will continue to be supported in the market," the company said in a statement on Thursday. GM's manufacturing facility at Talegaon will continue as an export hub for Mexico and Central and South American markets. GM exported 70,969 units from its Talegaon plant last year, thrice its sales in India.
"In India, our exports have tripled over the past year, and this will remain our focus going forward. We determined that the increased investment required for an extensive and flexible product portfolio would not deliver a leadership position or long-term profitability in the domestic market," Stefan Jacoby, GM Executive Vice President and President, GM International, said. GM made this decision soon after the sale in March of GM's European brands to PSA Group.
After nearly two decades, GM's Indian business is yet to make a profit while in China it delivered 272,770 vehicles in April alone — more than ten times in comparison to India. GM has 10 joint ventures, two wholly-owned foreign enterprises and more than 58,000 employees in China. Passenger cars and commercial vehicles are sold under the Baojun, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Jiefang and Wuling brands. In 2016, GM delivered more than 3.8 million vehicles in China.
