The plant currently supplies two economy cars the new Sagitar and new Jetta - with competitive prices that make the sedans among the most popular in the local market.

Some see FAW-Volkswagen as essential to Chengdu's auto industry and economic development.

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"We attach greater importance to German business entities and welcome all German enterprises," said Li Hua, deputy director of the Economic & Technological Development Zone in Longquan district.

Li and his colleagues visited Germany five times - more visits than to any other country.

Li said Merkel's visit to Chengdu is a wonderful opportunity to share and promote cooperation with German enterprises.

The German government ceased direct financial aid to China in 2009, but it started to invest in sustainable industries such as environmental protection and energy efficiency, said Feng Zhongping, vice-president of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations

"To generalize auto power efficiency technology in China will be in accordance with their strategy," he said.

"Several years ago, Japanese cars used to take a leading position, netting a quarter of Chinese vehicle market sales, but now German cars have overtaken them," said Zhao Junjie, an expert of European studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"The sound Sino-German relationship plays a part," Zhao said.

Auto consulting agency J.D. Power conducted a survey last year that found that a record-high 35 percent of Chinese consumers are inclined to buy German cars rather than brands from other countries.

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