The Driving Force Behind China's Chery

The chief of the No. 1 Chinese automaker has global aspirations. Exports to Italy, Egypt, and Russia are up, and there's talk of a Volvo bid Chinese automotive workers check Chery QQ model cars as they come off the assembly line at their factory in Wuhu, Anhui Province. MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images He's a local boy made good. The son of farmers, Yin Tongyao, 45, hails from the Anhui Province village of Liuji, Chaohu. That's just 36 miles from Wuhu, where in 1997, Yin helped found Chery Automobile. Now chairman, Yin has used his engineering knowledge, entrepreneurial energy, and marketing flair to make Chery China's No. 1 domestic automaker and one with global aspirations. On July 6, Chinese business magazine Caijing reported that Chery is considering buying (BusinessWeek.com, 7/7/08) Ford Motor's Swedish Volvo unit for $4.4... [read full story]