New Delhi, Aug. 1 General Motors plans to stave off the domestic launch of its global sports utility vehicle brands — Cadillac and Hummer — for this year.

For the current year, it plans to almost double the production of its compact car Spark as it commences operations at the new plant in September.

The plant is slated to be inaugurated in the presence of the company’s global President and Chief Operating Officer, Mr Fritz Henderson.

Nodding his head to the disco music blaring out of his car’s nine speakers, Zhang Linsen swings the shiny, black Hummer H2 out of his company’s gates and on to the spacious four-lane road.

Running a hand over his closely shaved head, Zhang scans the expanse of high-end suburban offices and villas that a decade ago was just another patch of farmland outside of Shanghai. To his left is a royal blue sedan with a couple and a baby, in front of him a lone young woman being chauffeured in a van.

Shanghai - The growing strength of the Chevrolet brand helped General Motors and its domestic joint ventures in China achieve record first half sales. Sales of the GM family in China rose 12.7 percent on an annual basis to 590,126 units.

Sales of Chevrolet, one of GM’s two foundational brands in China, jumped 34.6 percent in the first half to 109,131 units. Chevrolet benefited from strong demand for the Lova compact sedan and new Epica intermediate sedan. Both models are manufactured by Shanghai GM.

As Americans’ appetite for gas-guzzlers has evaporated, General Motors may be closer to selling its Hummer brand, according to Reuters.

The struggling auto maker is in talks with Mahindra & Mahindra, an Indian counterpart, as well as Russian and Chinese manufacturers, the news service reported citing unnamed sources. Mahindra has long been considered a potential buyer of the Hummer brand, given its desire to own a line of sport-utility vehicles.

General Motors Corp is in talks with Indian automaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd and automakers in Russia and China about selling its Hummer brand, sources familiar with the matter said.

One source close to the discussions said Mahindra is not very interested at this time, as it has plans to launch its own trucks and sport utility vehicles in the U.S. market.