By Markus Klausen

 

Daimler AG expects strong market developments in China to continue in 2022 after the auto maker saw good growth in the country this year.

"I'm extremely optimistic about China in the next year as well," the car maker's China chief Hubertus Troska told journalists on Thursday.

Everything speaks for the fact that China will be a "super market" in 2022 and that demand for premium vehicles, in particular, is strong, he said.

Daimler sells roughly every third car in China, which is the most important market for the auto maker.

While other markets experienced a slump this year, mainly due to the semiconductor shortage, Daimler's Mercedes-Benz brand was able to increase sales in China by 4% to around 592,200 vehicles in the first nine months of 2021. However, third-quarter sales in China were affected by bottlenecks in chip supply.

Mr. Troska added that the market for electric vehicles in China is particularly significant. "China will be by far the most important market for electric vehicles in the next ten years," he said.

 

Write to Markus Klausen at markus.klausen@dowjones.com

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 25, 2021 06:13 ET (11:13 GMT)

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