(Yicai Global) Aug. 2 -- European carmaker Stellantis has appointed Ashwani Muppasani as president of GAC Fiat Chysler Automobiles, its Chinese joint venture with GAC Group, to spearhead a rebound of the Jeep brand after sales dropped in China.

Muppassani will also join Stellantis’ executive committee in China, reporting to Gregoire Olivier, chief operating officer in the country, GAC FCA announced on July 31.

Muppasani joined Fiat Chrysler Automobiles as head of purchasing and supply chain of the Asia-Pacific region before Stellantis was created by a merger in 2019. He also held executive positions in several multinational auto and parts companies, including General Motors.

Jeep’s decline in China in partly related to European and US automakers having not grasped the changing demands of Chinese consumers in recent year, while Japanese and self-owned brands have performed well, a senior GAC official told Yicai Global.

It is not realistic for Jeep to achieve a rapid increase in sales, but it can develop in the direction of a niche brand in order to gradually get out of the trough, the person added.

Amsterdam-based Stellantis also appointed Zhe Hengli as deputy general manager of GAC FCA and its executive group in May to help pull the Jeep brand out of plight, as the Chinese sport utility vehicle market is becoming increasingly competitive.

The first China-made GAC FCA’s Jeep model was the fastest selling SUV in the Chinese market in 2015. With the introduction of more models in 2017, sales reached 222,000 units, a year-on-year increase of about 36 percent. Although overall demand for SUV is still strong in China, Jeep’s production and sales have continued to fall.

The latest statistics from GAC showed that GAC FCA was the only passenger car company in the group that saw sales fall this year, with just 11,800 vehicles sold in the first half, down 33 percent from the same period last year. GAC sold more than 1 million vehicles in the first six months, a 24 percent gain.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione