BMW becomes 1st global brand to take control of Chinese venture

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A BMW Z4 on displa at last week's Paris auto show

BMW is spending US$4.1 billion to control its Chinese joint venture, a deal which will give it more power over the German car giant’s business in the world’s biggest car market.

The agreement with Brilliance China Automotive Holding makes BMW the first carmaker to take advantage of China’s policy to let foreign companies take majority control of their local partnerships. The car maker said on Thursday it is increasing its stake in the venture with Brilliance to 75% from the current 50%.

The move gives BMW a bigger say over its business in China, and allows it to retain a larger proportion of the earnings it generates in the massive market.

China is a key focus for all major car companies, but sales of luxury vehicles have been coming off as the trade war with the US damps consumer demand.

The deal will help BMW lessen the impact of higher tariffs imposed in the trade fight, as it now plans to boost manufacturing capacity in China and expand local production of models including electric cars.

“We are now embarking on a new era,” said BMW chief executive officer Harald Krueger. “China is quickly becoming an important development and production base for BMW new energy vehicles.”

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang，right, meets BMW's chief executive and chairman Harald Kruger on Wednesday in Beijing

The pact shows China’s government is following through on its pledge to open up the economy to foreign ownership after the 50:50 joint-venture rule that has restricted global brands’ access to the market for decades.

The policy shift also gives carmakers such as Daimler, Volkswagen and General Motors a chance to obtain a bigger control over their businesses in China.

“BMW’s move is a signal that China may be giving a green light for foreign carmakers to lift their stakes in local joint ventures ahead of the original timeline,” said Tian Yang, an analyst with China Securities International in Hong Kong.

Until now, foreign carmakers’ ownership in Chinese joint ventures has been capped at 50 per cent. China said in April it was scrapping the limit for electric-car ventures as soon as this year. For commercial vehicles, the cap will be eliminated in 2020 and the one for passenger vehicles will end in 2022, the government said at the time. BMW said on Thursday its deal will be completed in 2022.

The agreement proved a drag on Brilliance shares, however. Other Chinese car stocks have also slumped amid investor concerns that companies will be left with a smaller share of their ventures’ future earnings should global partners increase control.

Brilliance CEO Qi Yumin said being the first at something usually means having to “face a lot of questioning”. “But we’d rather do it earlier rather than waiting till 2022 to sit down and start the negotiations, ” he added, explaining the firm’s move to sell another quarter stake in the business to Germany’s BMW.

While Brilliance is getting a hefty payment from BMW for the added quarter stake, it is reducing its holding in a partnership that accounted for most of its profit last year.

The shares, the second-worst performer this year among Chinese car stocks traded in Hong Kong, were halted early on Thursday. Brilliance has a market capitalisation of about US$7 billion.

Shares in BAIC Motor, a partner of Daimler, fell as much as 18 per cent while SAIC Motor Corp, Volkswagen’s local companion, declined 4.6 per cent.

“Investors are now looking to Mercedes-Benz to see when it might raise the stake in its joint venture with BAIC Motor,” China Securities’ Tian said. “If that happens, it will definitely cut contribution to the Chinese carmaker and hurt their profits.”

All global car companies in China are now approaching their Chinese partners over their joint-venture stakes, Brilliance CEO Qi Yumin said at the Shenyang event.

“Being the first usually means we have to face a lot of questioning,” Qi said. “But we’d rather do it earlier rather than waiting till 2022 to sit down and start the negotiations.”

BMW is the biggest exporter of vehicles from the US to China, putting it among major companies most exposed to a trade war. BMW has warned that trade tensions could drag on profits in coming months. Last year, the carmaker shipped more than 100,000 sport utility vehicles to China from its Spartanburg plant in South Carolina in the US.

Krueger met Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Wednesday in Beijing. He said China will not only become BMW’s biggest market but also an important manufacturing hub to make cars for export to other markets, according to a Chinese government website.

The BMW-Brilliance joint venture will invest about €3 billion to expand its plant structure, doubling its annual manufacturing capacity to more than 650,000 vehicles from the early 2020s on, Krueger told reporters in Shenyang.

Chinese workers checking BMW-Brilliance cars

BMW will start making its first pure-electric vehicle in China under the joint venture with Brilliance by 2020. The model will be sold in China and also exported.

China and Germany are forging closer ties with each other as trade relations worsen with the US. Krueger was in Berlin in July during a summit between Li and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Among discussions were opportunities to open up China more to foreign investment.

国内首例！宝马控股华晨宝马，首获合资话语权

继获得中国政府明确承认享受股比开放政策红利后，10月11日，宝马集团和华晨集团共同官方宣布，宝马将增持华晨宝马股份，增持交易完成后，宝马将持有华晨宝马75%股份。业内人士表示，作为股比开放第一例，虽然华晨让出了华晨宝马的控股权，但宝马加大了在华投资，而华晨也获得了稳定的合作伙伴。正如华晨集团董事长祁玉民所言，股比改变之后，将改变中国品牌躺在合资身上赚钱的现状，倒逼中国提高自身的技术实力和管理水平。

增资30亿欧元控股合资

10月11日，在宝马集团中国战略协议的签字仪式上，对于宝马增持股权一事，祁玉民表示，该交易预计交割时间为2022年。

同日，华晨集团在香港的上市公司华晨中国发布公告称，该公司旗下全资附属公司沈阳金杯汽车以290亿元（约合30亿欧元）的价格，向宝马出售华晨宝马25%股权，宝马集团对华晨宝马的持股比例从50%将升至75%。沈阳金杯仍将保留华晨宝马25%的持股。

宝马集团相关负责人也介绍称，宝马集团对华晨宝马的投资将增加30亿欧元，用于未来几年沈阳生产基地的改扩建项目。其中，位于铁西的新厂区建成后，将使铁西工厂现有产能翻倍；而大东厂区的改扩建项目也在进行中，未来可以根据未来宝马车型和市场需求而逐渐拓展。未来三到五年内，华晨宝马的年产能将逐渐增加到每年65万辆。

就在前一天，国务院总理李克强在中南海紫光阁会见德国宝马集团董事长科鲁格时强调，宝马公司同中方最新合作项目即将落地辽宁沈阳，将是中方放宽汽车行业外商来华投资股比限制后的首个受益者。

今年6月，发改委、商务部发布的《外商投资准入特别管理措施（负面清单）（2018年版）》显示，2018年我国将取消专用车、新能源汽车的外资股比限制，在接下来的2020年将取消商用车、2022年取消乘用车外资股比限制，同时取消合资企业不超过两家的限制。

一个月后，在李克强总理访问德国期间，宝马集团和华晨集团签署了华晨宝马汽车有限公司长期发展框架协议，确定在沈阳中德产业园建设华晨宝马第三工厂。

华晨面临双重挑战

显然，宝马集团将从外商投资股比放宽新政中受益，不过，华晨宝马的另一合资方华晨集团却正面临着一系列挑战，这些挑战既来自于对华晨宝马的依赖，又来自于自身在造车上的受挫。

事实上，自今年合资股比将放开的消息传出后，虽然华晨集团早在7月就曾予以否认，但华晨中国股价却不断走低，到10月10日已经跌至10.76元。

宝马一旦提升在华晨宝马中的合资股比，华晨集团的股比就将相应下降，这意味着华晨集团在华晨宝马中所能获得的利润可能受到影响。

目前，华晨宝马对华晨集团的业绩表现影响较大。2017年，华晨实现74.57万辆，同比下滑3.7%，其中华晨宝马实现销量38.65万辆，同比增长24.65%，华晨宝马在华晨汽车中的销量占比达51.83%。

华晨中国在2018年中期报告中称，本集团未经审核应占合资企业业绩由2017年上半年人民币26.664亿元增加37.9%至2018年同期人民币36.774亿元。这主要由于本集团间接拥有50%权益之合资企业华晨宝马所贡献之盈利增加所致。该宝马合资企业于2018年首六个月之销量达209768辆宝马汽车，较2017年同期售出之185021辆宝马汽车增加13.4%。

此外，华晨汽车自身的新能源汽车生产资质存在着被终止的可能。今年9月，工信部装备工业发展中心发文称，拟将停止生产新能源汽车产品12个月及以上的30家企业名单上报工信部，这其中就包括华晨汽车。据了解，对于停止生产新能源汽车产品12个月及以上的新能源汽车生产企业，工信部将予以特别公示。相关企业再次生产要经过工信部核查，若未通过，工信部应责令该企业停止生产、销售活动。

一位接近华晨的人士透露，近两年内，华晨企业都在忙于内部整合，将金杯品牌与雷诺合资，仅保留中华品牌，同时研发部门将大量资金用于中华V6、V7的研发，导致对新能源产品的投入很少，错失了在新能源汽车方面的发展机会。

虽然面临一系列挑战，但全国乘用车市场信息联席会秘书长崔东树指出，25%的股权是关联企业的标准，相互间有燃油积分和新能源积分的较大协同优势，因此保留华晨25%股权对合作双方企业都是有意义的。另外，汽车行业受到的政策约束相对复杂，华晨应该会得到很好的国企政策支持，因此宝马未来较长时间不会进一步改变股权关系。

延长合资期限加码中国

值得关注的是，除了明确未来的股权结构，此次宝马集团与华晨集团还同意将华晨宝马的合资协议延长至2040年（从2018年-2040年）。

崔东树表示，宝马在传统车企中较早进军新能源汽车领域，在整体布局上，处于领先地位。宝马将中国市场放在一个重要的位置，是想要在新一轮的竞争中占据先发优势。

2003年，宝马集团与中国华晨集团建立了合资企业。在入华15年的发展历程中，宝马在中国先后建立了整车生产工厂、电池研发生产中心。

自入华以来，中国一直是宝马的全球最大单一市场。2017年，约有56万辆宝马品牌汽车交付给中国消费者。目前，宝马在华已经形成年销接近60万辆的规模，占据自身全球销售额的比重将近30%。

据统计，宝马集团在中国已推出6款新能源车型，是豪华车领域新能源产品最为丰富的品牌。2018年前9个月，宝马集团新能源车在中国市场销售同比增长接近5倍，其中两款国产新能源车型的累计销量首次超越1万辆。根据规划，从2020年开始，纯电动车型BMW iX3将于大东工厂下线，这款车型只在中国生产，但不仅供应中国市场，也将出口全球市场。

同时，继2017年10月沈阳动力电池中心投产后，今年5月，华晨宝马动力电池中心二期项目顺利奠基。据了解，动力电池中心二期生产的宝马全新第五代动力电池将用于全新BMW iX3概念车的量产车型，沈阳将成为宝马全球首个生产该款电池的生产基地。

除了新能源汽车方向，宝马近年来在其他方面也持续扩大在中国的布局。在自动化方面，宝马在中国完成了近3万公里的道路测试以及20万公里的模拟测试，今年5月，宝马成为首家在中国获得路试许可牌照的国际整车制造商；在充电领域，宝马集团今年在华公共充电桩的数量将达8万个，覆盖全国超过100个城市；在智能网联方面，截至今年7月底，中国目前已有超过140万辆互联的宝马品牌汽车。

在一系列布局的背后，是德系三强乃至整个豪车品牌在中国市场的竞争白热化。2017年，宝马（含MINI）在华销量为59.44万辆，奔驰（不含SMART）在华销量为58.79万辆，奥迪在华销量为59.53万辆。虽然凭借后半年的逆袭，奥迪最终成为2017年单品牌全年销量冠军，但三家销量差距微小。进入2018年，竞争进一步加剧，近期三家的销量增速均保持在两位的百分比。

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