The illustrious Beijing International Automotive Exhibition for the year 2010 kicked started recently and was opened up for the general public. Considered to be the largest auto show in entire Asia, the exhibition is expected to attract a lot of crowd. Looking at the wide Chinese market for the automobiles, senior officials have been asked to make a visit to the show by the Japanese auto manufacturers. The show would run till the 2nd of May.

The automakers have mainly focused on the promotions of eco-friendly cars; both hybrid and electric keeping in mind the problem of vehicle emission in China. There have also been plans to lift the production of compact cars to cater to the swelling demands of the Chinese market. Volkswagen AG of Germany has emerged as the car leader in the market as close to 1.4 million cars were sold in 2009.

Suzuki Motor Corporation has also decided to join hands with their German counterpart and plan to increase their sales considerably by establishing technological partnership and part-sharing with the German manufacturer. Talking about Japanese automakers, Nissan Motor Corporation stole the show last year with an increase of 39% in their overall sales.

The surge in the sales had also to do with the tax break program of the Chinese government for small cars. Nissan is expected to launch its Leaf compact electric car by next spring. Honda Motor Corporation which appeared in the scene in 1999 also had a 23% increase in their overall sales. They have plans to launch a Civic compact car and some other hybrid models that would be produced locally.