Owsianski, 51, replaces Joachim Wedler who has served as the German luxury brand's China chief since 2015 and plans to retire by the end of this year.

The appointment was effective as of Wednesday, according to Audi, a key Volkswagen Group premium car brand.

Owsianski was previously head of sales and marketing for Volkswagen's operations in Brazil and also had a broader role as a member of Volkswagen Brazil's management team.

A Beijing-based spokeswoman for Audi said the leadership change for the brand's China operations had been planned as part of a leadership succession plan for China.

(Reporting By Norihiko Shirouzu; Editing by Jan Harvey)