Chinese carmaker Great Wall making inroads into Ecuador market

Chinese automaker Great Wall is rapidly gaining market share in Ecuador, according to company officials.

Great Wall’s SUV.

The growing number of sales for Great Wall runs counter to the prevailing trend in Ecuador, which is “flat to falling,” an official says. The company, China’s largest SUV and pickup truck manufacturer, went from eighth place in 2015 to fifth in 2016 among the country’s top 10 best-selling brands in Ecuador. “2016 was a year of great changes for companies in the automotive market, worldwide,” a company memo said.. “In Ecuador, we are happy to be the car market’s biggest surprise.”

Great Wall’s bestseller was the M4, which sold 1,500 units in 2016, or three times more than in 2015. The company is growing rapidly, serving most Southeast Asia markets, with plans to move into Europe and North America.

Hernan Vasconez, general manager of Ambacar, Great Wall’s Ecuador distributor, was quoted as saying that “the brand consolidated and achieved the growth” that the company has planned since 2010.

South Korea’s Kia also moved up Ecuador market share, going from 10 percent in 2015 to 14 percent in 2016.