Mexico City , Mexico ( CNN ) -- At the lavish opening of Volkswagen 's latest plant in Mexico , the company 's boss and Mexico 's new president join hands to push a button . A vast sheet drops to reveal a gleaming assembly line for engines -- surrounded by newly hired VW employees waving Mexican flags . It 's an obviously symbolic moment : Mexico relies heavily on multinational car firms to power an important sector of its economy . The country is currently the fourth largest auto exporter in the world . `` Mexico is our main product delivery hub for the USA , '' VW CEO Martin Winterkorn tells CNN . `` In this regard Mexico plays a very important role -- specifically for the US market for which we want to produce and sell one million vehicles by 2018 . '' The United States has become a vital market for VW : Sales jumped 26 % in 2012 and they expect further growth this year , which helps to offset a decline in Europe . This week , Germany -- the economic engine on which the eurozone has come to depend -- reported its economy shrank in the last quarter . CNNMoney : European car demand near 20-year low . `` We do not expect Germany to sustain a heavy drop in GDP . We expect slight growth and stabilization in the automobile market , '' says Winterkorn . `` What concerns us is Southern Europe . We do n't see any growth there , but we are hopeful that there will be light at the end of the tunnel perhaps in 2014/15 . '' The former physicist has a reputation for meticulous attention to detail and is focusing on making VW the biggest carmaker in the world by 2018 . The company just announced record global sales . Whether his greatest ambition can be achieved may partly depend on the biggest prize of all : China . `` We expect an overall market growth of 8 % in China , '' he says `` We have invested and will bring new plants online in China . We think that we 'll grow . ''
VW CEO Martin Winterkorn tells CNN Mexico is key in carmaker 's North American growth . Volkswagen aims to become the biggest carmaker in the world by 2018 . Sales in the U.S. jumped 26 % in 2012 , helping to offset weaker European sales . Winterkorn : In 2013 `` we expect an overall market growth of 8 % in China ''