SHANGHAI—German car maker Volkswagen AG signed what looked like a meaty deal with one of its China joint ventures this week at a huge new trade show in Shanghai to ship almost $9 billion worth of cars and parts to China next year.
But it turns out the “Memorandum of Cooperation,” one of hundreds of deals inked at the China International Import Expo that wraps up on Nov. 10, represents business as usual for Volkswagen.
