Honda's JV with GAC ends production of Acura brand in China

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese carmaker Guangzhou Automobile Group (GAC) said on Monday its joint venture with Honda Motor is no longer producing or selling products under the Japanese firm's premium Acura brand.

GAC will continue to provide after-sales services to Acura customers in China through the joint venture's network, it said in a statement to Reuters. The joint venture will continue to produce other Honda brands.

Acura is the second foreign car brand to exit China, the world's largest auto market, in recent months. In October GAC said it was closing its joint venture with Stellantis, which made Jeep vehicles, following a sharp decline in Jeep sales in China over the past four years.

GAC-Honda, which started producing Acura cars in 2016 in China, only sold 6,554 of them in the country in 2021, down 45% from the previous year.

(Reporting by Zhang Yan, Brenda Goh; editing by Jason Neely and Susan Fenton)