China's flagship sedan, known as Hongqi (or Red Flat), celebrated its 60th anniversary at the headquarters of FAW Group Corporation in Changchun, Northeast China's Jilin province from July 31 to Aug 2.

Over 60 Hongqi staff, who have made great contributions to the corporation, are honored at the celebration ceremony on July 31. [Photo provided by chinadaily.com.cn]

FAW, a Chinese State-owned automotive manufacturing company, became the country's first automobile manufacturer when it unveiled the nation's first domestically produced passenger car, the Hongqi, in 1958.

The first Hongqi, or Red Flag, car was made in 1958. [Photo provided by chinadaily.com.cn]

Since its first appearance in 1958, the Hongqi sedan has been regarded as China's prime protocol car. It was frequently used by top Chinese leaders for big state celebrations as well as during receptions for important foreign guests including, the then US President, Richard Nixon on his ice-breaking visit to China in 1972.

Hongqi is one of China's iconic sedan brands and has been used as the vehicle for parades at national celebrations. [Photo provided by chinadaily.com.cn]

FAW Group has been constantly advancing with the times over the past 60 years. It is set to unveil two new luxury SUV models, the Hongqi HS7 and HS5, in 2019 to target private buyers. Meanwhile, the company's first Hongqi electric SUV, unveiled at the Beijing International Automotive Exhibition this year, is also scheduled to hit the market in 2019.

Statistics show that some 1,713,000 vehicles have been sold in the first half of the year, up 7.1 percent from the same period last year.