Panasonic opens research hub in Xi's signature smart city

China sales to reach $17bn by 2030, matching Japan, says President Tsuga

20181122N Baidu autonomous bus (REUTERS)

Passengers wait to board a self-driving bus created by Baidu's Apollo autonomous-vehicle program, for which Panasonic looks to develop technology.

SHUNSUKE TABETA, Nikkei staff writer

November 23, 2018 04:20 JST

BEIJING -- Panasonic President Kazuhiro Tsuga told reporters here on Thursday that the company has founded a research center in China's Xiongan New Area, a sprawling smart city under construction outside Beijing.

Noting that China will continue to be an area of growth for Panasonic, Tsuga said that the goal was to increase China sales to be on par with the company's home market of Japan by 2030.