China's Boycott Of Japanese Cars Hits Chinese State-Owned Company

Bertel Schmitt
by Bertel Schmitt

A company owned by China’s central government is taking it on the chin as Chinese customers avoid Japan branded cars. Dongfeng reduced production at its joint ventures with Nissan and Honda, the Wall Street Journal reports today. Amount or duration of what the company calls “production adjustments” is unknown.

At the same time, a 35 percent rise in Ford sales helped Ford joint venture partner Chongqing Changan achieve a third-quarter net profit. In September, the Ford Focus was the best-selling car in China.

“The Sino-Japanese tension has affected [demand for] Japanese automobiles, so we are trying our best to regain confidence from our dealers and customers,” Dongfeng said in a statement.

Three weeks ago, TTAC identified Dongfeng and Guangzhou’s GAC (JVs with Toyota, Honda) as among the companies most exposed to the Japanese car boycott.

According to Globaltimes, Nissan said that all their customers whose cars were damaged in recent anti-Japanese protests are entitled to free repairs as well as medical care coverage for personal injuries sustained during the same incidents.

Bertel Schmitt
Bertel Schmitt

Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.

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  • Blowfish Blowfish on Oct 30, 2012

    few days ago I read on a chinese news paper about the tokyo mayor ( ishi ? ) stepped down, because of buying the islands. thought that was allowing the Japs to exit the island gracefully. the longer it dragged out the more will hurt trades on both sides. is like 2 adults arguing over a dollar or more of a lottery ticket!

    • L'avventura L'avventura on Oct 30, 2012

      You're referring to Tokyo mayor Ishihara, he isn't stepping down because of the islands, he's stepping down because he has bigger plans and wants to enter the national stage. The unfortunate reality is that the island dispute has empowered right-wingers like Ishihara. Let's keep in mind, that the DPJ party that is currently in power was originally pro-Chinese, they wanted US bases out of Okinawa and closer ties with China. The 2010 island dispute and the rare-earth ban ended that. What's going to happen now is pro-American LDP will likely come back to power. By escalating these disputes, China has played into the hands of Japanese nationalist that are about to seize power. Also, this dispute will not end any time soon. It'll probably stretch on for years, if not decades. Its about one thing and one thing only: OIL. Lots of it. And neither side is going to give it up. http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2012/1029/The-real-reason-China-Japan-are-locked-in-a-territory-dispute

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