Foreign brands were taking market share away from Chinese brands at alarming rates. Multinational-brand refrigerator unit sales represented 31% of the Chinese market in 2002, up from 26% the previous year. Foreign brands were especially strong in the automatic washing machine sector where they accounted for 38% of sales in 2002, up from 31% in 2001. Nevertheless, Yang believed that Haier would preserve its local knowledge advantage over foreign firms: