Workers assemble cars at a car plant of SAIC-GM-Wuling in Qingdao city in east China’s Shandong province, Feb. 5, 2025.
ZHANG JINGANG | Future Publishing | Getty Images
DETROIT — General Motors and China’s SAIC Motor have extended a decadeslong Chinese joint venture that was set to end next year, the U.S. automaker said Tuesday night.
The extension comes amid a rapidly changing automotive landscape in China that has included the swift rise of domestic automakers and a shift away from traditional Western brands and legacy joint ventures.
GM declined to provide financial details of the extension, which comes amid heightened geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China, including a potential stateside ban of Chinese brands and vehicles.
The largest disclosed change in the dynamic of the agreement is its length. The initial deal established in 1997 was for 30 years, and now the companies have announced a 20-year extension of the 50-50 joint venture to 2047. The deal also extends a partnership with GM, SAIC and Guangxi Automobile Group, including its Wuling subsidiary, according to a GM spokesman.
GM noted that the deal will focus on refocus domestic sales of Buick and Cadillac models in China in addition to exporting products, including Chevrolet models, built in China for non-U.S. markets.
“We are committed to strong performance in the China market, and we see meaningful opportunities to compete in select international markets: the Middle East, Africa, South America, Mexico and Asia-Pacific,” GM China President John Roth said in a release.
The optimism about exporting comes as China quickly went from a reclusive market to the largest global exporter of vehicles in recent years.
China’s growth has been fueled by government funding for companies as well as a culture of innovation and speed the country has instilled in its workers, experts have said. But a slowing Chinese market and plant underutilization have forced companies to begin exporting to major auto markets globally.
China was GM’s top sales market from 2010 to 2023, but the shifting dynamics caused the Detroit automaker and its joint-venture partners to restructure operations.
The automaker’s earnings from China fell from around $2 billion annually in 2018 to two consecutive years of losses in 2024 and 2025. GM has reported $248 million in equity income through the first six months of this year following restructuring actions that cost the automaker $1.1 billion in special charges last year.
GM reports the joint venture has produced and delivered more than 20 million vehicles since it was established in China.
