China's Didi, Volkswagen Plan Ride-Hailing Venture

The deal, which could be announced early next week, would mark the first step for a potential broader alliance between the world's biggest auto maker by sales and the global leader in ride-hailing, as China races to get ahead in mobility services such as car sharing. It is also highlights that even as China begins to loosen requirements on joint ventures, foreign manufacturers are wary of going it alone and want a strong local partner to boost their chances of success in the country. "The joint venture with Didi is not just about ride-hailing. We want to explore mobility projects as well as autonomous driving and robo-taxis," said Weiming Soh, board member in charge of strategy at Volkswagen's China subsidiary. A spokeswoman for Didi said: "The parties are still exploring details of the cooperation. Potentially, both parties will focus on building together a fleet operation business, and look into other potential areas such as designing new car models for ride-hailing."