"BAIC's shareholding is a reflection of their commitment to our joint successful manufacturing and development alliance in the world's biggest car market," Daimler CEO Ola Kallenius said in a statement.

BAIC would "not further raise its stake in Daimler", the statement added. Daimler in turn holds a 9.55 percent holding in the Chinese firm.

In all, Chinese companies hold almost a fifth of shares in Daimler, which is to be renamed Mercedes-Benz next year following the spin-off of its subsidiary Daimler Truck.

In 2018, the owner of the Chinese auto group Geely, Li Shufu, temporarily became the largest shareholder in the German carmaker, snapping up a 9.7 percent stake.

Daimler confirmed in 2019 that BAIC, a key industrial partner in China, had acquired a holding in the group, initially announced at five percent.

Daimler and BAIC announced in February 2018 a 1.5-billion-euro ($1.69-billion) investment in a Mercedes-Benz factory in China, part of Daimler's electrification strategy.

With Geely, the owner of Volvo, Daimler is planning to develop and manufacture a new generation of electric Smart cars from 2022, as part of a joint enterprise first announced in March 2019.

Chinese interest in acquiring or investing in German companies has been met with suspicion in Europe, while relations between Beijing and the continent have been strained.

Daimler's German rivals are still majority owned by domestic automotive dynasties: the Porsche-Piech family at Volkswagen and the Quandt-Klatten clan at BMW.

ys-sea/mfp/rl

DAIMLER

BAIC MOTOR

VOLKSWAGEN

VOLVO AB

GEELY AUTOMOBILE HOLDINGS

BAYERISCHE MOTOREN WERKE AG