Zhang Ruimin, chairman and chief executive, said Haier aimed to shed most of its production in order to cut costs and quicken the pace at which it could serve customers and react to market trends.
“Our strategy will be to outsource more and more,” he said, adding that the company was in talks with Taiwanese contract manufacturers that could run some or most of Haier's factories to allow it to concentrate on developing and marketing its products.
“I feel that unlike some other products, competition in the white goods sector is no longer driven by technological revolutions. So where will your competitiveness show then? In your business model,” he said.