The Chinese state-owned company BAIC has held 9.98 percent of Daimler since 2019, the German carmaker said Monday, making it the single largest shareholder in the group.

"BAIC's shareholding is a reflection of their commitment to our joint successful manufacturing and development alliance in the world's biggest car market," Daimler CEO Ola Kallenius said in a statement.

BAIC would "not further raise its stake in Daimler", the statement added. Daimler in turn holds a 9.55 percent holding in the Chinese firm.

In all, Chinese companies hold almost a fifth of shares in Daimler, which is to be renamed Mercedes-Benz next year following the spin-off of its subsidiary Daimler Truck.

In 2018, the owner of the Chinese auto group Geely, Li Shufu, temporarily became the largest shareholder in the German carmaker, snapping up a 9.7 percent stake.

Daimler confirmed in 2019 that BAIC, a key industrial partner in China, had acquired a holding in the group, initially announced at five percent.

Daimler and BAIC announced in February 2018 a 1.5-billion-euro ($1.69-billion) investment in a Mercedes-Benz factory in China, part of Daimler's electrification strategy.

With Geely, the owner of Volvo, Daimler is planning to develop and manufacture a new generation of electric Smart cars from 2022, as part of a joint enterprise first announced in March 2019.

Chinese interest in acquiring or investing in German companies has been met with suspicion in Europe, while relations between Beijing and the continent have been strained.

Daimler's German rivals are still majority owned by domestic automotive dynasties: the Porsche-Piech family at Volkswagen and the Quandt-Klatten clan at BMW.

ys-sea/mfp/rl

DAIMLER

BAIC MOTOR

VOLKSWAGEN

VOLVO AB

GEELY AUTOMOBILE HOLDINGS

BAYERISCHE MOTOREN WERKE AG

Related Links
Car Technology at SpaceMart.com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Hackers steal research data from Sweden's Volvo Cars
Stockholm (AFP) Dec 10, 2021
Swedish manufacturer Volvo Cars said Friday that hackers had stolen research and development data from its systems in a cyberattack. The company, owned by China's Geely, "has become aware that one of its file repositories has been illegally accessed by a third party," it said. "Investigations so far confirm that a limited amount of the company's R&D property has been stolen during the intrusion," Volvo added. It warned that "there may be an impact on the company's operation" from the hack, s ... read more