Audi looks to maintain its lead

Audi Chairman and CEO Rupert Stadler revealed its plan for China at the Shanghai auto show. [Photo / China Daily]

Strategy for sustainable growth in next few years stressed

Audi plans to boost annual sales in China, its biggest single market in the world, to 700,000 units by 2020, Chairman and CEO Rupert Stadler revealed at the ongoing Shanghai auto show.

It is a goal that many analysts view as conservative for a brand that moved more than 400,000 cars last year.

However, the target is rational given the slowdown in the nation's premium car market in the first quarter of this year.

"In the first quarter, the premium segment in China grew slowly. It depended on our competitors, who lost a lot of volume. We had good growth," Stadler said in an interview.

Audi's China sales rose by 14.2 percent to nearly 103,000 cars in the first quarter, maintaining the brand's status as the top premium car manufacturer in the nation.

BMW sold more than 80,000 cars in China during that period, a slower increase of 7.4 percent compared to the previous year. By contrast, Mercedes-Benz sales in China tumbled by 11.5 percent to 45,440 units.

Stadler predicted that the premium segment in China will slow down in the near future relative to the explosive growth seen over the past few years.

"We cannot always expect to have 30 percent, 40 percent or 50 percent growth. I think it's very normal that the China market is moving now a little bit toward normality. I would say 10 percent or 15 percent is still a lot compared to other markets in the world. We are pushing strongly," he added.