“The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated,” Mark Twain was famously (mis)quoted as having once said. The same might be true of FCA and reports of its acquisition by a Chinese company.
The rumors came to a head last week when Automotive News reported that the Italian-American automaker was entertaining offers from several carmakers in China. But in the days since, some of those potential suitors have denied any interest.
First Geely denied any such designs on FCA. Now Reuters reports that Dongfeng isn't interested either. “We currently have no plans,” Dongfeng spokesman Zhou Mi reportedly said in response to questions over its potential involvement in an FCA buyout – not in the entire group, nor in any of its individual brands, divisions, or technologies.
Like Geely (which owns Volvo and the London Taxi Company), Dongfeng has a history of investing in foreign automakers. The Wuhan-based automaker, whose chief executive Xu Ping is pictured above, owns roughly one seventh of French group PSA (which in turn recently bought Opel and Vauxhall from General Motors) alongside the French government and the Peugeot family.
We wouldn't entirely discount the prospect of Dongfeng's future investment, though. Having “no plans” to disclose, after all, is not the same thing as ruling out the possibility altogether. Other automakers cited in the original report as potential suitors include Guangzhou (GAC) and Great Wall.
The country is full of automobile manufacturers eager to break out of their domestic market, including Shanghai/SAIC (which is closely tired to General Motors), FAW, BAIC, Chang'an, JAC, Chery, and BYD. So while we wouldn't exactly call FCA's acquisition a foregone conclusion, we won't be surprised to see it yet happen, either.
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