Japan's Mazda Motors aims to more than triple its annual sales in China by 2010.

A company statement said the firm, 33.4 percent owned by US auto giant Ford, hopes to lift its annual sales in China to 300,000 vehicles by 2010.

And the firm hopes it will sell more than 100,000 vehicles in China this year, up from 97,132 in 2004.

Mazda hopes the launch of eight new models within the next three to four years will help it reach this target.

"We will also form a sales company to expand our sales networks in China," the statement said.

Mazda will reportedly establish a vehicle sales joint venture in China with First Automotive Works Corp (FAW), the nation's top vehicle producer, which makes Mazda6 and Familier sedans and Premacy multi-purpose vehicles under technical licensing deals with the Japanese firm.

The Chinese Government approved a new car joint venture last week between Mazda, Ford and Chang'an Motor Corp, the US giant's current Chinese partner.

This new joint venture will also "be an important part of our efforts to fulfill our sales target in China," Mazda said.

The new venture, to be located in East China's Jiangsu Province, will have an initial annual production capacity of 160,000 cars, which could later rise to 200,000.

Mazda's 2004 sales in China, up 21 percent year-on-year, included 30,053 Mazda6s, 53,343 Familiers, and 12,926 Premacys.

But Mazda is trailing other major Japanese automakers Honda, Toyota and Nissan in China.

Honda said that it expects its 2005 sales in China to rise by 30 percent year-on-year to 271,000 cars, including 230,000 units from its joint venture with Guangzhou Automobile Group and 41,000 units from its other venture with the Dongfeng Motor Corp.

Sales of Honda, the third-biggest foreign carmaker in China after Volkswagen and General Motors, amounted to 215,000 units last year in the nation, up 74.8 per cent from 2003.

Toyota said that sales of its vehicles made in China are expected to reach 134,000 units this year, up from 87,000 units in 2004.

The company's two joint ventures in North China's Tianjin Municipality and southwestern Sichun Province with FAW produce Vios and Corolla compact sedans, and Land Cruiser Prado sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and Coaster buses.

FAW also makes Land Cruiser SUVs in northeastern Jilin Province under a technical licensing dealwith Toyota.

Toyota will launch its Crown luxury sedan at the Tianjin venture in the first quarter of this year.

(China Daily January 11, 2005)