China has provided the clearest indication to date that it plans to lift the cap on how much foreign carmakers can own of their local joint ventures, putting pressure on Chinese carmakers to speed up the building of their own brands.
In a joint release on Tuesday, the National Development and Reform Commission together with the science and industry ministries laid out a development blueprint for the country’s auto industry covering the years through 2025. The government will “open up the restriction on joint venture ownership in an orderly manner,” according to the plan, which didn’t provide details of how the liberalization will be carried out or provide a timeline.
