DETROIT, 18 November 2004 — General Motors Corp., the world’s largest automaker, has seen its business in the volatile Middle East grow more than 60 percent this year, but the company has no presence in Iraq and no immediate plans to re-enter the ravaged country.
Maureen Kempston Darkes, GM’s vice president for the Latin America/Africa/Middle East region, said Tuesday that new models from Chevrolet and Cadillac have led GM’s surge in the Middle East.
GM has operated in that part of the world for roughly 80 years, and its trucks, sport utility vehicles and premium cars traditionally have been top sellers. But changing demographics have prompted a shift in demand for smaller cars, Kempston Darkes said. As such, the automaker — No. 2 in the region behind Toyota Motor Corp. — has begun touting Chevrolet as its “fundamental brand.”
