SHANGHAI, Nov. 3, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- General Motors today became the first global automaker to sell 2 million vehicles in China in a single year.  

"This is another important milestone for General Motors in China," said Kevin Wale, President and Managing Director of the GM China Group. "It was only three years ago that GM became the first global automaker to reach the 1 million annual sales mark in China."

Wale added, "Over the past decade, China's vehicle market has experienced unprecedented growth. GM has grown with it, working with our joint ventures to expand our lineup of vehicles and brands, adding to our portfolio of services, and increasing our production capacity to meet the changing needs of consumers nationwide."

In 2007, GM and its joint ventures sold 1,031,974 vehicles in China. Last year, GM sold 1,826,424 vehicles nationwide. GM has been the sales leader among global automakers in China for five consecutive years. It has kept up the momentum in 2010.

GM and its joint ventures have benefited from record monthly sales throughout the year. In October, GM sold 199,641 vehicles in China, which represented an increase of 19.6 percent on an annual basis and was an all-time high for the month.

Shanghai GM, GM's passenger car joint venture, sold 99,003 vehicles in China in October. This was up 44.5 percent from the same month last year. Its overall sales, including exports, totaled 100,833 units in October.

October sales of Shanghai GM's Buick brand jumped 35.7 percent on an annual basis to 54,490 units. Demand for both the new LaCROSSE upper-medium sedan and Excelle family rose more than 40 percent year on year.

Domestic sales of Chevrolet products in October increased 52.5 percent year on year to 50,813 units, fueled by all-time monthly sales of the New Sail small car family (14,563 units) and Cruze lower-medium sedan (17,798 units). Chevrolet from Shanghai GM finished first in the recently published 2010 China Automobile Aftersales Customer Satisfaction (CAACS) Index.

Cadillac sales were also strong, totaling 1,716 units in October. The SRX luxury utility vehicle accounted for nearly half of Cadillac sales during the month.    

Sales in China by SAIC-GM-Wuling, GM's mini-commercial vehicle joint venture, rose 5.1 percent on an annual basis in October to 93,935 units. FAW-GM, GM's light commercial vehicle joint venture, sold 6,505 vehicles in October.

For the first 10 months as a whole, sales by GM and its joint ventures in China were up 35.5 percent on an annual basis to 1,976,913 units.

General Motors, one of the world's largest automakers, traces its roots back to 1908. With its global headquarters in Detroit, GM employs 208,000 people in every major region of the world and does business in more than 120 countries. GM and its strategic partners produce cars and trucks in 31 countries, and sell and service these vehicles through the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Jiefang, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling. More information on the new General Motors can be found at www.gm.com .

SOURCE General Motors