American car manufacturer General Motors cut the prices of some of its vehicles in China. Following the Red Dragon's general economic slowdown, GM has lowered the cost of 40 different models in an attempt to make them much more appealing to buyers and hopefully get more vehicles out of distributors' car lots.

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In a statement made on Tuesday on Shanghai GM's site, the automotive giant said that its joint venture with the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) set price reductions of as much as 53,900 yuan ($8,681) across brands like Buick, Chevrolet, and Cadillac.

Ever since China's economic slowdown, foreign carmakers like GM have been going through increasing pressure in the region, especially with Chinese automotive manufacturers also taking a huge chunk of the market. In fact, GM and its Chinese ventures have seen sales drop by 0.4 percent in the last month alone, as demand for their vehicles continued to drop.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Shanghai Volkswagen also made a series of price cuts last month that reached as much as 10,000 yuans ($1,612.08) for its models, including Lamado, its latest midsize sedan. Moreover, Ford Motor Co.'s joint venture with China's Chongqing Changan Automobile Co. reported that it would cover the 10 percent purchase tax for car buyers.

In his report to the Bloomberg Business Web site, Sanford C. Bernstein Ltd. senior analyst Robin Zhu said,"In years to come we expect 2015 to be known as the start of China's 'Great Moderation, [...] The ramifications of a drop in Chinese market profitability may be substantial."

A slowing economy demands discounts and other cost-cutting efforts to offset the declining demand and the rising supply. This is all the more true for the automotive industry. Thankfully, many companies are taking further efforts at cost reduction in the form of incentives like zero down payment, interest-free financing, and trade-in subsidiaries.

TagsGeneral Motors, shanghai GM, price cuts