People's Daily
German carmaker Volkswagen AG's joint venture with First Automotive Works Corp (FAW) expects its 2007 sales to grow by more than one-third after a strong performance in the first 11 months. Sales at the venture, FAW Volkswagen Automobile Co, will hit 480,000 cars this year, up from 350,000 units in 2006, said Weiming Soh, the firm's vice-president and marketing and sales chief. From January to November, the venture, based in the northeastern city of Changchun, moved 424,295 vehicles, surging 34.4 percent from a year ago, it said. Robust sales have enabled FAW Volkswagen to vault to the top spot in China's increasingly competitive passenger car market, beating Volkswagen's other venture with Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp (SAIC) and US firm General Motors' tie-up with SAIC.