吉利汽車上周三披露的利潤增速達到八年來的最高點，原因是2010年收購瑞典沃爾沃后吉利提高了產(chǎn)品設(shè)計和工程水平，從而推動銷量創(chuàng)下歷史記錄。

作為倫敦黑色出租車制造廠的所有者，因收購沃爾沃后推出的GC9和博越等平價車型的表現(xiàn)超過了初步預(yù)期，吉利已預(yù)計今年汽車銷量將猛增31%。

作為長期以來別人眼中的廉價品牌，吉利已經(jīng)轉(zhuǎn)型為志在高端的汽車廠商。借助沃爾沃的研發(fā)優(yōu)勢，吉利正在勇攀中國這個全球最大汽車市場的銷量排名榜，目前汽車銷量大概處在第七位。

明年，吉利計劃實施下一階段的擴張計劃——該公司打算成為首家在發(fā)達市場推廣自有品牌的中國汽車制造商。由吉利和沃爾沃合作推出的新品牌Lynk & Co，將率先登陸歐洲和美國。

分析師說，用不知名的中國品牌進入主要市場是一次高代價冒險；但投資者并未受此影響——12個月來吉利的股價已經(jīng)上漲了200%。

一家臺灣投資公司去年買進了大量吉利股份。該公司一位基金經(jīng)理稱：“這是個純粹的反轉(zhuǎn)故事?！?/p>

這位基金經(jīng)理指出：“以前它只是個普通的國內(nèi)品牌，但推出幾款新產(chǎn)品后，吉利已經(jīng)成功地提升了自己的品牌形象?！庇捎谖吹玫焦_談?wù)摫竟就顿Y的授權(quán)，該基金經(jīng)理要求不透露其姓名。

去年，吉利的國內(nèi)銷量增長了50%，達到76.6萬輛，動力來自GC9、博越以及采用了沃爾沃技術(shù)的小型車。掌握第一手信息的吉利管理人員對路透社表示，該公司今年的銷售目標(biāo)是超過100萬輛，但實際銷量有可能高的多，具體數(shù)字要看市場情況。

去年，吉利實現(xiàn)凈利潤51億元（7.41億美元），增長了一倍以上，是2008年以來的最大增幅。路透社在周三業(yè)績出爐前對分析師進行了調(diào)查，后者預(yù)計今年吉利的凈利潤將上升37%，達到70億元。

海外豪賭

增長當(dāng)然有代價。吉利汽車發(fā)言人楊學(xué)良稱，在過去的3-4年中，吉利及其母公司吉利控股每年的研發(fā)支出都達到100億元，約占今年收入預(yù)期的15%。

與之相比，湯森路透的數(shù)據(jù)顯示，吉利的國內(nèi)對手比亞迪2015年的研發(fā)支出為20億元。

不過，吉利在國內(nèi)的迅猛增長可能減速，原因是小排量車補貼縮水后整個中國乘用車市場增速放緩，這會進一步促使汽車廠商邁向國際市場。

本月初，吉利控股董事長李書福在北京對記者表示：“目前我們的工作重點首先是國內(nèi)的發(fā)展節(jié)奏和擴大國內(nèi)汽車市場份額，然后才會把注意力集中到海外?！?/p>

但咨詢公司IHS Markit Automotive亞太區(qū)首席顧問詹姆斯?曹認(rèn)為，用不知名品牌進行市場開拓是一場賭博，而且打響知名度可能需要幾年時間。

與之相反，兩家持股吉利的投資公司中有基金經(jīng)理指出，由于國內(nèi)增長空間充足，所以不需要擔(dān)心吉利的海外動作。

其中一位基金經(jīng)理稱：“海外業(yè)務(wù)表現(xiàn)良好是額外收獲，如果表現(xiàn)不好，也不必因此而感到擔(dān)心?！保ㄘ敻恢形木W(wǎng)）

譯者：Charlie

審稿：夏林

China's Geely Automobile Holdings posted its biggest profit growth in eight years on Wednesday, as improved product design and engineering following its 2010 purchase of Sweden's Volvo helped propel it to record sales.

Geely, which also owns the maker of London's black cabs, has already forecast a 31% jump in sales for the current year as affordable models introduced after the Volvo acquisition, such as its GC9 sedan and Boyue sport-utility vehicle, exceed initial estimates.

Long seen as a no-frills brand, Geely has transformed itself into an automaker with up-market aspirations, using its Volvo research-and-development advantage to climb the sales table in the world's largest auto market where it ranks around seventh.

Come next year, Geely plans its next phase of expansion as it aims to become China's first automaker to market its own brand - new Volvo collaboration Lynk & Co - in developed markets, beginning with Europe and the United States.

Entering major markets with an unknown Chinese brand is an expensive risk, analysts say, but investors are unperturbed: Geely's share price has trebled over the past 12 months.

"It's a total turnaround story," said a fund manager at a Taiwan-based investment firm that bought a significant amount of Geely stock last year.

"Before it was just a normal domestic brand, but after several new product launches it successfully elevated its brand image," said the person who was not authorized to speak publicly on the firm's investments and so declined to be identified.

Geely's China sales grew 50% last year to 766,000 vehicles, powered by the GC9 and Boyue, as well as small cars featuring Volvo technology. It aims to top 1 million this year, though could sell far more depending on market conditions, a Geely official with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

For 2016, net profit more than doubled to 5.1 billion yuan ($741 million), its strongest growth since 2008. The figure is set to rise 37% to 7 billion yuan in 2017, showed a Reuters poll of analyst estimates prior to Geely's Wednesday filing.

OVERSEAS GAMBLE

To be sure, growth has come at a cost. Geely and parent Zhejiang Geely Holding Group have spent 10 billion yuan on R&D in each of the past three to four years, or about 15% of current revenue, said spokesman Victor Yang.

That compared with 2 billion yuan in 2015 at domestic rival BYD, showed Thomson Reuters data.

But Geely's domestic growth spurts could lessen as expansion in China's overall passenger car market slows following the reduction of subsidies for small-engine vehicles, adding impetus to any international push.

"The current focus of our work is firstly the pace of development in China and increasing our share of the Chinese auto market, then next we can focus our work abroad," Geely Chairman Li Shufu told reporters in Beijing earlier this month.

But entering markets where the brand is unknown is a gamble, and it could take years to gain traction, said James Chao, Asia-Pacific chief of consultancy IHS Markit Automotive.

As there is plenty of room for growth in China, however, there is no need to be concerned about the move abroad, said fund managers at two investment firms that hold Geely stock.

"If they do well abroad it's a bonus, and if they don't then it's not a big reason to worry," one of the managers said.