China’s gear output reached 1.90 million tons in 2012, rising 36.6% from a year earlier. Although the overall scale and growth indicates China’s strong gear demand, there is still a large gap between China and foreign countries in basic research and development, product performance and so forth, and high-end products still need to be imported.
Gear as an important part of the equipment industry finds exceedingly wide applications, with the automotive industry as the main application field. Gear manufacturers have their specific focus products, with high concentration in various market segments. For example, in the heavy-duty truck transmission market, Fast occupies a market share of 75%; in the medium-duty, light-duty and mini-truck transmission market, Wanliyang is expected to raise its market share to 34% after acquiring Shandong Lingong; in the bus transmission market, Qijiang Gear Transmission has maintained a market share of 70% or so.
Business Focuses and Main Products of Major Gear Companies
Shaanxi Fast: It has an annual capacity of 1 million automotive transmissions, 50 million gears and 100,000 tons of automotive forgings. In July 2012, the first CX series heavy-duty hydraulic automatic transmission of Xi’an FC Intelligence Transmission Co., Ltd. (newly established) rolled off the production line.
Zhejiang Wanliyang Transmission: It boasts six wholly-owned or controlled transmission subsidiaries, with an annual capacity of 1.2 million transmissions of more than 1,000 varieties, mainly supporting commercial vehicle manufacturers including Beiqi Foton, Dongfeng Motor, Sinotruk Chengdu Wangpar Commercial Vehicles, Ziyang Nanjun, etc.
Jiangsu Pacific Precision Forging: In the first three quarters of 2012, it achieved revenue of RMB318 million, a year-on-year growth of 17.56%; the net income attributable to parent company was RMB 849 million, a year-on-year growth of 35.67%. Major customers include FAW-Volkswagen, Shanghai Volkswagen, Shanghai GM and Changan Ford, GM North America, Volkswagen Germany and John Deere, BYD, Great Wall, Changan, Wuling. GM and Volkswagen have become the company's most important customers.
