WASHINGTON, DC, USA, November 16, 2004 -- Following the release last week of a report by World Resources Institute (WRI), General Motors Corporation questioned the report’s conclusions with regard to the car models that it will sell in the Chinese market in 2005.

The report – Taking the High (Fuel Economy) Road: What Do the New Chinese Fuel Economy Standards Mean for Foreign Automakers? – analyzes how prepared the major automobile manufacturers were to meet the Chinese government’s fuel economy standards, which are due to take effect next year. The goal of the report, one in a series by WRI, is to provide significant information to investors about the performance of companies that must meet increasing environmental requirements world-wide.

In the report, WRI explicitly cautioned that it had not been able to obtain complete, detailed information from a number of manufacturers, and instead used the best available public information in conducting its analysis.

After discussions with GM, WRI has obtained additional information concerning GM automobiles to be sold in China, which indicates that GM will meet the 2005 Chinese fuel economy standards. 

WRI is encouraged that full disclosure of all such information is in the best interests of companies and the investing public alike.

The complete text of WRI’s statement, along with last week’s press release and the full report, can also be found here in the WRI Newsroom.

For more information, contact:

World Resources Institute
Paul Mackie, senior media officer, +1(202)729-7684, pmackie@wri.org
Paul Mackie, WRI Media Officer, +1(202) 729-7684, pmackie@wri.org