Author: Liu Yan | Layout: Zheng Xueqin | Design: Guo Qing

This article serves as the 'Editorial Note' featured in the December 2025 issue of 'Auto Review' magazine.

The author holds the position of Deputy Secretary-General at the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers and serves as the President of 'Auto Review' magazine.

On October 30, FAW-Volkswagen celebrated the production of its 30 millionth vehicle, marking a historic milestone as the first passenger vehicle enterprise in China to achieve such a feat. This number is not merely a production statistic; rather, it acts as a 'comprehensive report card' that encapsulates China's journey of opening-up, the mutual benefits of joint ventures, the vibrancy of the market, industrial upgrading, and the shift towards green transformation. Furthermore, it vividly portrays the remarkable leapfrog development of China's automotive industry—from initially 'following' global trends, to 'running alongside' international peers, and eventually 'leading' the way—since the inception of reform and opening-up. This achievement is a direct outcome of the effective implementation of national strategies within the automotive sector.

The accomplishments of numerous outstanding joint venture enterprises in the Chinese market, with FAW-Volkswagen as a prime example, stand as a powerful testament to China's unwavering commitment to high-level opening-up policies. They vividly demonstrate to the international community that China is not just a vast automotive market but also a fertile ground for investment and deep-rooted collaboration. Simultaneously, these successes reaffirm that, in the era of industrial globalization, mutual benefits can only be achieved through cooperation, and collective progress is only possible through openness.

Since the dawn of Sino-foreign joint ventures and cooperation in the 1980s, numerous joint venture automakers have deeply cultivated the Chinese market. Armed with strong brands, exceptional products, cutting-edge technologies, and high-quality services, they have become synonymous with quality and trust in the eyes of Chinese consumers. These enterprises have not only driven but also spurred the development of upstream and downstream sectors within the industrial chain, as well as regional economies. They have served as the 'anchor' and 'growth engine' for the overall production and sales volume in China's automotive market, playing a pivotal role in fostering its prosperity and making irreplaceable and significant contributions to the advancement of China's automotive industry.

Amidst the wave of industrial transformation and upgrading, joint venture automakers have exhibited a relatively sluggish response to changes. Their pace of electrification transformation has lagged behind market expectations, and their intelligent experiences have struggled to keep pace with the innovative rhythm set by local brands. The market barriers that were once constructed through brand prestige and product advantages are now dissipating, leading to varying degrees of difficulties, such as plunging sales, reduced market share, and shrinking channels. Faced with the continuous rise in new energy vehicle penetration rates, the joint venture camp is collectively under pressure, encountering the most severe challenges since their entry into China.

In response to industry upheavals, joint venture automakers are actively embarking on a transformation towards the 'New Joint Venture Era'. Through strategies such as reverse technology output from Chinese joint venture partners, deepening local R&D efforts, reconstructing supply chain systems, accelerating the introduction of electric platforms, and expanding cooperation with leading Chinese technology enterprises, joint venture automakers are transitioning from a 'market for technology' model to one of 'technology sharing and global collaboration'. The electrification and intelligent experiences accumulated in the Chinese market are now reversely empowering the global operations of foreign brands, creating a new paradigm for Chinese technology to go global. This 'two-way journey'—empowering local transformation with global brands and feeding global development with local innovation—will not only assist joint venture automakers in reshaping their competitiveness in the Chinese market but also propel China's automotive industry from 'bringing in' to 'going global'. It will upgrade the 'Chinese solution' to a 'global solution' and recreate a 'Chinese increment' in overseas markets. With the new joint venture model of 'Chinese technology + global brands', it will inject fresh momentum into enhancing the global competitiveness of China's automotive industry and make new strides towards high-quality development.

The Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China has laid out specific arrangements for expanding high-level opening-up and creating a new landscape of win-win cooperation, reflecting the high importance attached to open cooperation at the national level. Supported by policies aimed at stabilizing foreign investment, China's vast market and well-established industrial chain and supply chain systems provide favorable conditions for foreign and joint venture enterprises to accelerate their electrification and intelligent transformation. Looking ahead to the '15th Five-Year Plan' period, policies and measures to promote foreign investment will continue to be rolled out. While enhancing services for foreign-invested enterprises, efforts will be made to further optimize a fair competitive environment and strengthen the confidence and sense of gain among foreign and joint venture enterprises.

In line with the new requirements for high-level opening-up and high-quality development in the new era, and to assist joint venture automakers in revitalizing their brand influence and enhancing consumer trust, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers has extended its 'Seeing Chinese Automobiles' industry brand campaign, which has been ongoing for five years. The participation scope has been broadened from Chinese brands to include joint venture brands. Aimed specifically at joint venture automakers, the 'Seeing the New Joint Venture Era' industry brand campaign has been launched. From an industry standpoint and high-end perspective, the campaign will document and showcase the achievements of outstanding joint venture enterprises in strategic transformation, technological innovation, brand and product renewal, and global development. It will consolidate their reputation for excellent quality and value adherence, reinforce their new advantages, help enterprises construct a high-level brand narrative of 'in China, for the globe', and empower the communication of joint venture brands.

The 'Cover Story' of this magazine, taking the rollout of the 30 millionth vehicle by FAW-Volkswagen as a springboard, presents a panoramic view of the survival and development status of typical foreign joint venture enterprises in the automotive industry through nine in-depth report articles. It also offers open-ended reflections on how foreign joint venture enterprises can better thrive under the new circumstances. We eagerly anticipate working hand in hand with outstanding joint venture automakers to jointly embrace the 'New Joint Venture Era'.

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