(Yicai Global) April 12 -- Shares in IAT Automobile Technology soared today after the Chinese auto designer said it will design a new energy vehicle model for a global auto manufacturer in a deal worth CNY70 million (USD11 million).

IAT’s stock price [SHE:300825] closed up 6.96 percent at CNY20.91 (USD3.30) today.

IAT, which counts Volkswagen, Mercedez-Benz and Honda among its clients, penned a development commission contract with the overseas carmaker yesterday, it said today, without going into further details.

The foreign automaker, who was not named, is a long-standing client of IAT, and in the past 12 months revenue from this client came to CNY453 million (USD71 million), the Beijing-based firm said. Contracts with the customer accounted for 27.5 percent of IAT’s revenue in 2020, up from 11.4 percent in 2018.

The partnership shows that IAT’s experience and technical ability in NEV development is highly recognized abroad, it said. The new signing will boost the company’s profitability and improve its reputation in the electric car field both at home and abroad.

Editor: Kim Taylor