Ambitious Chinese carmaker Chery Automobile is the latest firm to be linked to a possible strategic co-operation deal with Fiat Auto, according to media reports today. The Reuters news agency quote senior Chery management as confirming that talks with Fiat are on-going. "We have talked with Fiat about cooperation," a Chery executive, who declined to be identified, told Reuters today. "One option is for Chery to make cars using Fiat's technologies, and the models would be sold anywhere. The Italians favour the China market," the report added.

Reuters further speculate, quoting unnamed regional sources, as saying that Fiat Auto is looking around at other potential automotive partners in China as their current arrangement with Nanjing Auto has struggled to either break even, or make much market impact when other leading foreign carmakers are having plenty of success and turning in profits. Reuters quoted Marchionne today as refusing to comment on any potential deal hat might arise with Chery; but the Fiat CEO, who is in Shanghai this week, told the news agency that the joint venture with Nanjing Auto will be "close to breakeven this year, and should make some money next year."

Chery Automobile Co, Ltd. was founded in 1997 in the city of Wuhu, in China’s Anhui Province, specialising in the production of automobiles and related components. By 2005, the total assets of Chery stood at 11.8 billion Yuan. So far, Chery personnel numbers amounts to around 13,000. Chery has developed complete product lines, and the company’s own R&D projects have enabled the development and production of vehicles, engines, gearboxes and other core components.
 

Chery has introduced six types of car onto the Chinese market: Eastar, Tiggo, A5, Cowin, V5, and QQ. The present production capacity for vehicles and gearboxes is respectively 400,000 and 300,000 units per year. In 2005, Chery achieved a sales volume of 189,100 cars with a total year-on-year increase rate of 118%, and it exported 18,000 cars overseas, ranking number on in the export of domestically built cars. Meanwhile, Chery is engaged in a number of R&D projects, in anticipation of introducing a number of brand-new models onto the market in 2006 and the short term future. As a staged target, Chery expects to produce more than one million cars by 2010 and enhance its exportation share production to 40 percent.

On October 31, 2005, the new generation ACTECO series engines were launched onto the market, which are in line with leading European technology. It signals the first generation of engine brand belonging to China. Chery produces many different engines with displacement ranges from 0.8L to 4.0L-V8. The products include in-line engines and V-type engines, and gasoline engines and diesel engines. The present production capacity is 400,000 units/year. In December, 2005, the President and General Manager of Chery Automobile Co., Ltd, Yin Tongyao, was awarded the honour of being “One of the ten people who were most influential to China’s economy in 2005”, by CCTV in Beijing.