China's Dongfeng Motors misses growth target

WUHAN, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- China's Dongfeng Motor Corporation said Wednesday it had fallen short of its 2017 growth target as sales at its ventures with PSA Group and Kia Motors had slipped.

Vehicle sales of Dongfeng Motor hit 4.1 million units last year, compared with its annual target of 4.5 million units, but sales revenue and profit rose year on year, the company said.

Dongfeng Motor, one of China's largest automakers, relied on joint ventures with global names for 65 percent of its total sales last year.

Ventures with Nissan and Honda were major contributors.

Dongfeng Nissan sold a record 1.11 million cars last year, up 10.4 percent, while Dongfeng Honda sold a record 714,000 units, up 25.3 percent, according to Dongfeng Motor.

The joint venture with France's PSA, Dongfeng Peugeot Citroen Automobile Company Ltd., sold 378,000 cars last year, a 37-percent drop year-on-year and down from a high of 705,000 units in 2015.

Dongfeng's venture with Kia suffered a 45-percent fall in sales.

Despite the sales slump, neither Dongfeng Peugeot Citroen nor Dongfeng Yueda Kia reported a loss, said Liu Weidong, deputy general manager of Dongfeng Motor, adding that he believed both companies had touched the bottom and would stabilize and bounce back.

He said that Dongfeng Motor is resolved to fulfill the target of selling 4.5 million vehicles in 2018.

Measures include investing more in new energy sectors as well as expanding presence in overseas markets. Enditem