(Yicail) Sept. 11 -- The possibility of building a factory in the United Kingdom is still at the research stage, Chery Automobile said after the head of the Chinese auto giant’s UK operations told the British Broadcasting Corporation that the firm was looking at building cars in the country.

"Regarding production in the UK, we’re still only in the research phase,” a spokesperson for the Wuhu-based carmaker told Yicai yesterday.

It is just a "matter of time" before Chery makes a final decision on whether to build a car plant in the UK, the BBC reported on Sept. 8, citing Victor Zhang, Chery’s UK director.

Chery, one of China's leading automakers, has been expanding its footprint in overseas markets, driven by growing exports and a series of foreign joint ventures. A UK manufacturing base would fit with the firm’s broader strategy of building a stronger presence in the European market.

Overseas markets have become crucial for Chery, with exports accounting for half of its 1.88 million sales last year. Its overseas sales surged 25 percent to 720,300 units in the eight months ended Aug. 31 from a year earlier, making up 48 percent of the total.

In Europe, Chery inked a deal in April with Ebro-EV Motors to set up a Spanish JV and produce new electric vehicles. Total investment will be around EUR400 million (USD429 million), with production to be located at a former factory of Japan’s Nissan Motor.

A number of Chinese carmakers have unveiled plans to build factories or produce overseas. SAIC Motor said in July that it will build a factory in Europe. Neta’s factory in Thailand started mass production in March. GAC Aion began building its Thai factory in February. And BYD said last October that it will open a plant in Hungary.

Editor: Martin Kadiev