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Updated: 2007-04-23 11:46

Foreign auto giants will show off their new models at the biennial Shanghai auto show, each trying to woo buyers in the booming Chinese car market.

"By 2020 China will be the world's largest market for new vehicles. In fact, the day may come sooner if the market continues to grow at 15 percent a year", said Kevin Wale, president of General Motors (GM) China Group.

GM and its joint venture partner Shanghai GM will display 40 vehicles in a 4,500 square meter exhibition space in Shanghai, including two concept cars - a Chevrolet Volt fuel-cell concept vehicle and a new version of the classic Buick Riviera.

Rick Wagoner, GM chairman and chief executive officer, said his company planned to double the production capacity of its major plants in China before 2010.

Last year the world's largest automaker sold 876,700 vehicles on the Chinese mainland, up 32 percent on the previous year, raising its market share by 0.6 percentage points to 11.8 percent, larger than that of any other foreign producer.

Another US auto giant, Ford Motor Co, is showcasing 52 vehicles from its five brands - Ford, Mazda, Volvo, Jaguar and Land Rover.

The automaker has developed competitive muscle in China in everything from car and engine manufacturing to marketing, after-sales service and R&D, said Cheng Meiwei, Ford China president and chief executive officer.

With declining sales in North America, Ford saw its sales jump 87 percent in China last year to a record 166,722 vehicles and "is running full throttle towards its goal of becoming the leader in the Chinese car market", Cheng added.

Japan's Toyota Motor, the world's second largest automaker, is displaying 31 vehicles, with 14 from its Toyota brand and 10 from its luxury brand Lexus.

"China has become Toyota's third largest market after the United States and Japan", said Yoshimi Inaba, executive vice president of Toyota.

The Japanese automaker sold 308,000 vehicles on the Chinese mainland last year, up 68 percent year on year.

"The Shanghai auto show has attracted all the world's major automakers - including DaimlerChrysler, BMW, Honda, Nissan, Ferrari and Porsche", said Wang Lei, speaking for the show organizers.

"None of the big names will be absent", Wang added.

China overtook Japan to become the world's second largest auto market last year, with new vehicle sales of 7.22 million units.

Rising auto sales are mainly driven by sales of sedan cars - passenger cars excluding sport utility vehicles (SUV) and multi-purpose vehicles (MPV) - which grew 37 percent to 3.83 million units last year.

Foreign brands took a 75 percent share of the Chinese market for sedan cars last year, with the top three best sellers being Shanghai GM, Shanghai Volkswagen and FAW Volkswagen, all of which are Sino-foreign joint ventures that mainly produce foreign brand vehicles.

Analysts say China, described as an "auto power" by Zhang Guobao, vice minister of the National Development and Reform Commission, will account for 50 percent of global market growth over the next 20 years.