SÃO PAULO, Brazil — The second Chinese brand is about to land in Brazil. The first is Hafei, working through local distributor Effa Motors, which started selling small vehicles in Brazil in late 2008, notably the small M100 light commercial vehicle. Chery will hit the Brazil market in July with the Tiggo SUV.

Like the Effa-Hafei vehicles, the Tiggo will be imported from neighboring Uruguay, where China's third automaker, Chery, has set up an assembly operation. Under Mercosur trade rules, the Chinese car is exempt from import tariffs, making it truly price-competitive in this market at the equivalent of about $23,300.

The Tiggo is a medium-size 4x2 SUV powered by a 123-horsepower 2.0-liter engine mated to a manual gearbox. It will be equipped with two airbags and ABS; an audio system with MP3 and USB ports; foglights; power windows, locks and sideview mirrors; hydraulic power steering; air-conditioning and light alloy wheels. The Chery customer will receive a three-year warranty and roadside assistance.

Chinese shares retreated from a nine-month high Thursday, tracking Wall Street's overnight losses, amid renewed concerns over whether the economy is headed for recovery.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 23.88 points, or 0.9 percent, to 2,639.89. The Shenzhen Composite Index for China's second exchange was flat at 880.75.

The Shanghai benchmark had closed at a nine-month high on Wednesday.

Unexpectedly dismal U.S. consumer spending figures weakened investor confidence in the world's biggest economy, and reinforced worries over China's own ambiguous data for April.

China reported surging retail sales and investment in April, but plunging exports and weak industrial output growth detracted from that positive news, analysts said.

"The figures in general signal an economic revival, but there are worries. Many investors think the government will move to help weak areas later," said Li Jing, an analyst for China Securities Research in Beijing.