China’s Changan Automobile Co has officially become an independent automaker directly overseen by the central government. The state broadcaster CCTV News reported on Tuesday that the restructuring places Changan under the direct supervision of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) of the State Council, making it the third such centrally administered carmaker after FAW Group and Dongfeng Motor.
Previously operating as a subsidiary of China South Industries Group, Changan has now been re-established as a centrally owned enterprise headquartered in Chongqing Municipality in southwest China. The newly structured firm will oversee 117 subsidiaries and will focus on cutting-edge technologies, including smart vehicles, robotics, flying cars, and embodied intelligence.
Changan also intends to speed up its international expansion, with key target markets including Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Central and South America, and Europe.
Industry experts have hailed the restructuring as a major step in China’s broader strategy to reform its central state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and optimize the deployment of state capital. The shift is also expected to boost the global competitiveness of the country’s automotive sector, particularly in the fast-evolving new energy vehicle (NEV) segment.
In the first half of 2025, Changan sold 1.355 million vehicles, including 450,000 NEVs, an increase of 48.8% year-on-year, underlining its strong momentum in the electric vehicle market.
The restructuring comes in the wake of similar changes announced earlier this year by Dongfeng and Changan, both part of a broader realignment among China’s central SOEs. In March 2024, SASAC Chairman Zhang Yuzhuo stated during the country’s ‘two sessions’ meetings that the commission would introduce new policy measures to assess the NEV divisions of the three centrally owned automakers separately. The evaluation criteria would include technological capabilities, market share, and long-term development potential.
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