(Yicai) July 11 -- SAIC Motor, China’s biggest carmaker announced a leadership reshuffle yesterday, with 63-year-old Chairman Chen Hong stepping down having reached retirement age. 

Chen will be succeeded by Wang Xiaoqiu, who is 60 and has been promoted from president of the Shanghai-based company, with Jia Jianxu, previously vice president, taking over as president.

Chen was at SAIC for 40 years, becoming president in 2004 and chairman 10 years later. He pushed the auto giant's electrification and smart transitions and helped it reach the top spot among Chinese auto firms by sales volume for 18 years in a row.

Wang has worked for 35 years at SAIC and has been its president since 2019. Before that, he was general manager at SAIC's passenger vehicle unit and at SAIC GM, a joint venture with General Motors.

Jia, 46, was GM at SAIC Volkswagen and SAIC's parts supplier Yanfeng Automotive Trim Systems.

SAIC targets sales of 5.45 million cars this year, a 9 percent increase on last year, and annual revenue of CNY790 million (USD108.7 million), a 6 percent gain from 2023, according to its annual earnings report. 

Editor: Tom Litting