Shanghai (ZXZC)- GAC Group announced last week that its operating revenue of the first half of 2020 shrank 9.54% from a year ago to 25.439 billion yuan ($3,714,221,766) and the semi-annual net profit attributable to shareholders plunged 52.87% year on year to roughly 2.318 billion yuan ($338,455,552). Besides, the basic earnings per share stood at 0.23 yuan, versus 0.48 yuan for the year-ago period.

(Trumpchi GS4, photo source: GAC Motor)

Given the company's profitability and the demands for future development, GAC Group's board of directors recommended payment of an interim dividend of 0.3 yuan per 10 shares (including tax) to all shareholders.

The global industrial chain was badly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic in the first quarter of the year, leading to a severe plunge in the production and sales of automobile industry, said GAC Group. However, GAC Group withstood the huge pressure, posting a continuous sales rebound since the beginning of the second quarter.

According to GAC Group's sales reports, the automaker sold 824,579 units during the first two quarters, of which 518,482 units were sold in the second quarter, a robust increase of 69.38% compared to the first quarter. Besides, it acquired 10.47% share in China's PV market for the first half of the year, 0.62 percentage points higher than the prior-year level.

Two major Sino-Japanese joint ventures featured rising impetus during the second quarter. As of June, GAC Toyota had gained double-digit growth for the third month in a row, while GAC Honda also attained year-on-year sales growth in April and June.

It is noteworthy that GAC Group's self-owned new energy vehicle (NEV) sales exceeded 20,000 units in the first half of 2020, shooting up 89.42% from a year earlier and outperforming China's overall NEV market that saw its sales slump 37.4% year over year.