GM Daewoo said exports were likely to double and make up more than 80% of its sales this year.

“Exports have been much better than expected both in assembled cars and in CKD kits,” Nick Reilly, chief executive, told the Financial Times. “That may go a long way to offsetting the reduction in the domestic market.”

When GM bought a 44.6% stake in bankrupt Daewoo Motor for $400m (£217m) in 2002, the company sold 252,139 vehicles abroad. That grew to 452,134 last year and is likely to reach almost 800,000 in 2004.

Increasing the export market has been a priority in the two years since Reilly, the former chairman of Vauxhall, GM's UK subsidiary, assumed control at GM Daewoo.

The company's exports to Europe will be rebranded as Chevrolet from January.

Having made a $150m (£81.3m) loss in its first full year of operation, GM Daewoo is still uncertain about when it will move into the black.

“We said the first few years would be loss-making because of the investment we had to make ... but the losses we have made have been somewhat lower than we originally anticipated,” says Reilly.