JAC Group: the group, its brands and who controls it
Facts checked
- State-owned (provincial)
- Shanghai Stock Exchange 600418
Listing: Shanghai Stock Exchange, code 600418, since 2001
JAC is the vehicle group of Anhui province, based in Hefei. Its predecessor, the Chaohu Automobile Parts Factory, was set up in May 1964 and became Anhui's first vehicle maker; it built the province's first 2.5-tonne truck in 1968 and a first batch of twenty trucks the following year, later badged JAC. The listed company, Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group Corp., Ltd., has traded in Shanghai as 600418 since 2001.
Ownership has two layers. The listed company is controlled by an unlisted holding company, Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group Holdings, usually shortened to JAG. In 2020 Volkswagen (China) bought 50% of JAG through a capital injection, leaving the Anhui provincial state-assets commission with the other half. Volkswagen separately raised its stake in the two companies' electric-vehicle venture in Hefei to 75% in December 2020 and renamed it Volkswagen Anhui — the first company in mainland China that Volkswagen controls outright.
The group is stronger in trucks and vans than in cars. It has exported since 1990, when it sent vehicles to Bolivia, and says it has shipped more than 800,000 vehicles to over 130 countries, with assembly operations in Egypt, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Mexico, Iran and Brazil. Passenger-car sales have been uneven: the group sold 592,499 vehicles in 2023 and 403,094 in 2024.
Its most visible recent project is Maextro, an ultra-luxury electric brand launched in 2024 with Huawei, whose first car, the S800 saloon, went on sale on 30 May 2025. JAC also controls the bus maker Ankai, listed separately in Shenzhen.
Key facts
| Chinese name | 江淮汽车 “jyahng-HWY CHEE-chuh” 江 (jiāng) is the Yangtze, 长江 (Cháng Jiāng), and 淮 (huái) is the Huai river; 江淮 is the name for the land between them, which is most of Anhui province |
|---|---|
| Legal name | Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group Corp., Ltd. |
| Ownership | State-owned (provincial) |
| Founded | 1964 |
| Headquarters | Hefei, Anhui, China |
| Vehicles | Cars, Commercial vehicles and Buses and coaches |
| Listings | Shanghai Stock Exchange 600418 |
| Founded | May 1964, as the Chaohu Automobile Parts Factory — Anhui's first vehicle company |
| Listed | Shanghai Stock Exchange, code 600418, since 2001 |
| Volkswagen's stake in the parent | 50% of the unlisted holding company JAG, agreed in May 2020 and completed in December 2020; the Anhui provincial state-assets commission holds the other 50% |
| Volkswagen Anhui | Volkswagen 75%, JAC 25% since December 2020; founded 22 December 2017 as JAC Volkswagen |
| Sales | 592,499 vehicles in 2023 and 403,094 in 2024 |
| Exports | more than 800,000 vehicles cumulatively to over 130 countries and regions, with more than 1,000 overseas sales and service outlets |
| Overseas assembly | knock-down assembly in Egypt, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Mexico, Iran and Brazil; the Mexican plant at Ciudad Sahagún has capacity above 25,000 vehicles a year |
Ownership tree
- JAC Group (group)
- Ankai (brand) Held at 41.61%
- JAC (brand) Held at 100%
- Maextro (brand) Controlled; the share is not published
Who controls JAC Group?
Anhui provincial government controls JAC Group.
Indirect. Anhui's provincial state-assets commission controls JAC through the unlisted holding company JAG, in which it holds 50%; Volkswagen (China) holds the other 50% of JAG but does not control the listed carmaker.
| Holder | What it is | Share | Since | What the source says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group Holdings Co., Ltd. | controls | controls | not published | JAG is the controlling shareholder of the listed Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group Corp., Ltd. (Shanghai, 600418). The exact percentage could not be confirmed from a JAC filing, so it is left null. |
Stakes and ventures JAC Group holds
These are holdings that are not outright ownership, so they are not in the tree above. A joint venture is a third company the two parents built together: the percentage is a share of that venture, never a holding in the partner.
| Holding | What it is | Share | Since | What the source says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Volkswagen (Anhui) Automotive Company Ltd. | runs a joint venture with | 25% of the joint venture | 22 December 2017 | JAC founded the venture with Volkswagen on 22 December 2017 as a 50/50 company for new-energy vehicles, and was reduced to 25% when Volkswagen took majority control in December 2020. |
Brands
| Brand | Held | Origin | Founded | Models | Markets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 江淮JAC | directly | China | 1969 | 0 | 8 |
| 尊界Maextro | directly | China | 2024 | 1 | 1 |
| 安凯Ankai | directly | China | 1997 | 0 | 1 |
Joint ventures
| Venture | Partner | Since | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Volkswagen Anhui (formerly JAC Volkswagen) | Volkswagen Group | 22 December 2017 | Founded as a 50/50 electric-vehicle venture; Volkswagen raised its stake to 75% in December 2020 and took management control, leaving JAC with 25%. |
| Maextro (HIMA) | Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. | August 2024 | Not a shareholding. JAC builds the cars and owns the brand; Huawei defines the product, supplies the technology and sells through its Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance. |
JAC Group: questions people ask
- Who owns JAC?
- Ownership is split. The listed company is controlled by the unlisted holding company JAG, and JAG is owned 50/50 by the Anhui provincial state-assets commission and Volkswagen (China), which bought in during 2020. Volkswagen is therefore a half-owner of JAC's parent but not of the listed carmaker directly.
- What does JAC stand for?
- Jianghuai Automobile Company. 江淮 (Jiānghuái) is the name of the region between the Yangtze and Huai rivers, which covers most of Anhui province.
- Does Volkswagen own JAC?
- Volkswagen owns half of JAC's parent holding company and 75% of the separate Volkswagen Anhui electric-vehicle company in Hefei. It does not control the listed JAC carmaker, which remains under Anhui provincial control.
- Does JAC make Huawei cars?
- JAC builds the Maextro brand, launched in 2024, in a Hefei plant purpose-built for it. Huawei defines the product, supplies the software, driver assistance and some powertrain parts and sells the cars through its alliance, but the brand belongs to JAC and Huawei holds no equity.
- Are JAC vehicles sold in the United States?
- No. JAC exports to more than 130 countries, with assembly plants in Mexico, Brazil, Egypt, Ethiopia, Vietnam and Iran, but it has no United States sales operation.
Related
Sources for JAC Group
- Gasgoo, Wheels of Change: the story of JAC Group (Part 1). Read . Founding in May 1964, the 1968 first truck, the 1990 Bolivia export and the cumulative export figure.
- Wikipedia, JAC Group. Read . Finding aid for the listing, the sales series and the overseas assembly plants.
- electrive.com, VW takes majority stake in joint venture with JAC. Read . December 2020 completion of the 50% JAG purchase and the 75% Volkswagen Anhui stake.
- Volkswagen Group China, Partner. Read . Volkswagen's own statement of the 2017 founding, the December 2020 renaming and the 75% stake.
- CnEVPost, Huawei-JAC joint brand Maextro launches S800 luxury sedan as latest challenger to Mercedes-Maybach. Read . The 30 May 2025 launch of the Maextro S800.