GM to Up Sales, Praises AvtoVAZ Joint Venture.

(From The Moscow Times)

General Motors defended its production partnership with AvtoVAZ on Tuesday, but said its growth in Russia this year would stem from sales of its own models.

The U.S. car giant said it would open 34 new dealerships by the end of the year in an effort to increase sales in Russia by 30 percent, to around 100,000 vehicles, and increase its market share. It declined to say how much it would invest.

In the same period, production of models by the GM-AvtoVAZ joint venture in Tolyatti are due to fall by 9 percent, to 47,000 vehicles.

In its first news conference in Russia since the state took control of AvtoVAZ in December, …