Retail News CRM

Category: Automotive

Retail News Asia is committed to providing both local and global retailers with the latest Auto and Car news throughout the Asian market. This on a daily base.

  • Apollo Tyres setting up around Rs 3,460 cr greenfield plant in Hungary

    Apollo Tyres setting up around Rs 3,460 cr greenfield plant in Hungary

    Apollo Tyres is setting up Europe’s largest greenfield plant in Hungary with an investment of 475 million euros to produce nearly 62 lakh tyres for passenger cars and heavy commercial vehicles per annum.

    The facility at Gyongyoshalasz, located less than 100 km from here, will start production early next year and it will produce tyres to cater to the entire European market.

    “Construction of Apollo Tyres’ first European greenfield plant at Gyongyoshalasz has started on April 10, 2015 and we will start production in early 2017. It will be Europe’s largest greenfield tyres plant,” Apollo Tyres (Hungary) KFT, Head – Project Controller, Amitabh Arya told .

    The Hungarian facility will be a state-of-the-art plant and once completed it will have a capacity to produce 5.5 million (55 lakh) passenger car and light truck (PCLT) tyres and 6,75,000 heavy commercial vehicle (HCV) tyres per annum.

    The total investment in the facility will be 475 million euro (about Rs 3,460 crore) and the Hungarian government was very excited about the investment from a leading Indian company.

    Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, at a joint press conference with visiting Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari last week, had specifically mentioned about the Apollo Tyres plant saying it was one of the largest foreign investments in Hungary.

    The Gyongyoshalasz facility will produce both Apollo and Vredestein branded tyres and will cater to the entire European market.

    Apollo Vredestein B.V. is part of Apollo Tyres Ltd and has its head office in Enschede, the Netherlands. It designs, manufactures and sells high-quality tyres under the Apollo and Vredestein brands in Europe and North America.

    Onkar S Kanwar headed Apollo Tyres Ltd, with its corporate headquarters in Gurgaon, is in the business of manufacture and sale of tyres since its inception in 1972.

    The company has grown manifold, establishing its footprint across the globe. It has manufacturing units in India and The Netherlands.

    The company markets its products under its two global brands – Apollo and Vredestein, and its products are available in over 100 countries through a vast network of branded, exclusive and multi-product outlets.

    At the end of its financial year on March 31, 2016, Apollo Tyres had clocked a turnover of USD 1.8 billion, backed by a global workforce of around 16,000 employees.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • GM to add SUV production line at China JV in 2017

    GM to add SUV production line at China JV in 2017

    General Motors Co (GM.N) plans to launch a new SUV production line at its joint venture factory in the Chinese central city of Wuhan during the first half of 2017, the official Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday, citing company sources.

    SAIC General Motors (SGM), a joint venture between China’s SAIC and General Motors, started operations at the Wuhan plant last year. The new production line will be able to produce 360,000 vehicles a year, bringing the combined capacity to 600,000, Xinhua said.

    SGM said it has invested 7.5 billion yuan ($1.1 billion) for the new production line, which has been under construction since January 2015, the news agency reported. It will manufacture a new generation of GM Chevrolet Equinox SUVs.

    The plant generated revenue of nearly 23 billion yuan ($3.4 billion) in the first nine months of this year, Xinhua said.

    GM’s China chief Matt Tsien told a press conference in March that Wuhan plant was operating at maximum utilization, and a planned second phase is being added there that will double capacity.

    He said that sport-utility vehicles, multi-purpose vehicles and luxury cars will continue to be hot segments in China going forward, with SUVs and MPVs accounting for 40 percent of firm’s overall China growth to 2020.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • China’s Geely shows global ambitions, launching new compact SUV

    China’s Geely shows global ambitions, launching new compact SUV

    Chinese automaker Geely, the owner of Volvo cars, showed off the first model of its new Lynk & Co brand in Germany on Thursday, a compact SUV aimed at taking on the likes of BMW and Mercedes-Benz, as well as ride-hailing service Uber, across the world.

    The Lynk, made in China, will go on sale at home in 2017, followed by Europe and the United States in 2018, and marks one of the first attempts by a Chinese carmaker to create a global brand that makes use of European design and technology know-how.

    Chinese companies have been snapping up cutting-edge German technology to push upmarket and gain a global footprint. This year alone, Chinese home appliances maker Midea has agreed to buy German robotics firm Kuka and Fujian Grand Chip Investment Fund LP is taking over semiconductor equipment maker Aixtron.

    Long seen as a cheap, no-frills brand in China and unheard of in Europe, Zhejiang Geely Holding Group purchased struggling Swedish carmaker Volvo from Ford in 2010 to help it leapfrog a decade of research and development.

    While Volvo will continue to focus on premium vehicles, Lynk is an attempt to grab a slice of the mid market. It will initially take on foreign carmakers’ joint ventures in China, but – as shown by the global launch in Berlin – it also aims to challenge the world’s biggest automakers in their own markets.

    ‘SMARTPHONE ON WHEELS’

    At the launch of the ’01’ model at a former railway station in Berlin that now frequently hosts start-up conventions, Alain Visser, senior vice president at Lynk & Co, described the SUV as “our first smartphone on wheels.”

    It is targeting tech-savvy consumers that may have prioritized flexibility over car ownership in the past. “We are looking very much at millennial consumers all over the world who are very much concentrated around bigger cities,” he said.

    Each car will be permanently connected to the Internet and have a “share” button, enabling owners to rent out their car to other motorists via a smartphone app.

    “That becomes a source of income, which some of the consumers may use, a bit like an Airbnb vehicle,” said Visser, referring to the home rental company.

    Lynk has more models in its line-up, which the carmaker plans to launch over the next 3-5 years, but Visser declined to give details on body styles or launch dates apart from the name of the next car: ’02’.

    Once the full line-up is launched, Lynk aims to sell more than 500,000 vehicles a year by 2021, he said.

    EUROPEAN KNOW-HOW

    Geely’s design has been refined by British designer Peter Horbury, who headed up design at Volvo in the 1990s and oversaw it for Jaguar, Aston Martin and Ford’s other brands from 2002.

    In doing so, Geely is upping the competitive pressure on established global carmakers, which have long accused Chinese rivals of merely ripping off their designs.

    Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), for example, has sued China’s Jiangling Motor after it released the Landwind X7 SUV in 2014, a car that JLR says copies its Land Rover Evoque while costing around the third of a price.

    The car will be a hybrid powered by a 1.5-litre three cylinder petrol engine combined with a lithium-ion battery and electric motor, and will be the first based on the Complex Modular Architecture platform developed by Geely and Volvo.

    Mercedes-owner Daimler and BMW are also investing heavily in hybrid vehicles and will be watching closely to see how the ’01’ fares with European consumers.

    Geely said the car would be priced competitively and said it would be fixed across all markets, but declined to give details. It plans to keep down costs by selling the car online only and limiting the number of configurations available.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Volkswagen centralizes ASEAN after-sales operations in Malaysia

    Volkswagen centralizes ASEAN after-sales operations in Malaysia

    German automaker, Volkswagen Group has announced the relocation of its regional after sales center for the Asia-Pacific region. Previously, Singapore supplies for the regional retail outlets in the Asia-Pacific Region. The Volkswagen Group, however, decided to relocate it to Malaysia expanding their logistics capacity to almost 50,000 square meters.

    “The expansion and the relocation of our regional genuine parts center from Singapore to Malaysia reflect the significance and potential of these growing markets and will lay the foundation for further growth. Malaysia will be the new hub for after sales logistics in the region,” said Imelda Labbé, Head of Volkswagen Group After Sales.

    “Our new regional logistics center in South-East Asia will allow us to supply parts throughout the region even faster than before. From 2018, directly connected dealerships in Singapore and Malaysia will receive two deliveries per day. This will significantly improve our customer service in the region at the same time as laying the foundation for further growth,” added Marcus Edelmann, Director After Sales for the Volkswagen Group Regional Office in South-East Asia.

    Starting on 2018, the company says it will be able provide faster supply of genuine parts to 28 markets in the Asia-Pacific region through their new supplier, Malaysia. Meanwhile, the regional retail outlets will then receive of up to 2 deliveries per day. Work will start on the logistics center on January 2017. There are also plans for the later integration of the after sales activities of other Group brands and the regional pooling of the delivery chain for genuine parts.

    These parts will be built in the Port of Tanjung Pelepas (PTP) free trade area in Johor Bahru, at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. The automaker says that the direct connection to the port eliminates the need for intermediate handling. As a result, Volkswagen says the logistics processes will become more efficient and environmentally compatible.

     

    Lees ook:

  • KDDI, Toyota develop app to reduce road accidents

    KDDI, Toyota develop app to reduce road accidents

    Toyota Motor, Komeda and KDDI in September have jointly developed a smartphone application called Driving Barista, aimed at reducing the number of traffic accidents in Aichi Prefecture caused by drivers using their smartphones while driving.

    This is the first traffic safety initiative in Japan involving a smartphone application, which is to be carried out and jointly promoted by an automobile company, a communication company, and a food and beverage company.

    For thirteen consecutive years, Aichi Prefecture has had the highest rate of traffic fatalities in Japan. Furthermore, there were also 50,101 arrests involving the use of smartphones while driving, and the increase in violations of this nature has also intensified the problem.

    Toyota, Komeda, and KDDI will promote traffic safety in Aichi Prefecture through an educational initiative where participation is accessible for all, and can lead to a reduction in traffic accidents.

    The Driving Barista application can only be used within Aichi Prefecture. By using the gyro sensor to sense the tilt of the smartphone body, and the GPS to determine the distance driven, this application measures the distance the driver has driven while leaving the smartphone face down. When the cumulative distance reaches 100 km, the driver can receive a coupon for a cup of blended or iced coffee at a Komeda Coffee Shop.

    According to one survey, approximately 60% of respondents said they use their smartphones while driving, with approximately half of these respondents keeping only one hand on the steering wheel. Therefore, the companies hope that the new application will raise drivers’ awareness about not using smartphones while driving.

    “We have already been carrying out educational activities to prevent the use of smartphones while driving, and we hope that this initiative between the three companies will help solve the problem facing Aichi prefecture,” said Akira Dobashi, director in charge of CSR and environment at KDDI.

    “We developed the Driving Barista smartphone application as a fun way to help prevent traffic accidents,” said Dobashi. “We hope to contribute to accident prevention by providing a new experience for drivers.”

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Renault launches two new cars in Indonesia

    Renault launches two new cars in Indonesia

    Despite a bleak forecast for the automotive market in Indonesia, French carmaker Renault and its local partner PT Auto Euro Indonesia launched two new products in Jakarta on Wednesday: the KOLEOS and KWID.

    Serge Yoccoz, Renault ASEAN director of operations, said Indonesia was one of only a few countries to see the launch of the KOLEOS, a medium sport utility vehicle (SUV), ahead of Europe.

    “The new KOLEOS will be [Renault’s] flagship for the Indonesian market,” he said. “It has been redesigned to have unique features and has the ability of an SUV.”

    As for the KWID, Yoccoz added, the mini crossover would be offered for consumers eyeing high fuel efficiency and low maintenance costs. “The KWID will be able to address Indonesian customers’ [demand] for a stylish car,” he said.

    The KOLEOS is offered at Rp 460 million for its standard version and Rp 495 million for the panoramic sunroof version. Meanwhile, the KWID is tagged at Rp 117.7 million and is expected to be able to compete in the compact car segment, which accounts for 16.3 percent of the whole automotive market, according to 2015 data from the Association of Indonesian Automotive Manufacturers (Gaikindo).

    Bambang Subijanto, director of Indomobil Sukses International–an umbrella company of Auto Euro Indonesia, said the Renault-Nissan and Indomobil partnership would create good business synergy and respond to customers’ demands, especially in after-sales services.

    The sales target for both models is set at 1,000 units, until 2017.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Honda planning new China car factory for 2019 start

    Honda planning new China car factory for 2019 start

    Honda Motor Co plans to build a new factory in China that will produce passenger cars from 2019, boosting its output capacity in the country by about a fifth, two people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

    Honda and partner Dongfeng Motor Group Co (0489.HK) are experiencing explosive growth in China with sales for their joint venture soaring 48 percent for the year to date thanks to the popularity of the XR-V sport-utility vehicle as well as the recently launched Civic sedan.

    At the same time, the venture, Dongfeng Honda, is coming close to its capacity limits at its two factories, targeting sales of 450,000 vehicles for 2016 – not far off current annual capacity of 480,000.

    The new factory will be located in Wuhan, central China, a major auto hub. It will initially produce 120,000 cars a year, with capacity likely to double eventually, the sources said, declining to be identified as there had not been a formal announcement by the companies.

    Honda confirmed that it was discussing the additional plant in Wuhan with Dongfeng, but that it had nothing official to announce now. A Beijing-based spokesman for Honda said the project had yet to be formally approved by the company or the government.

    The plan was initially reported by the Nikkei business daily, which said the venture planned to spend “hundreds of millions of dollars” on the factory.

    The new factory would be Honda’s seventh in China. Honda also has a joint venture with GAC Group (601238.SS)(2238.HK) called Guangqi Honda which has three plants. The Japanese automaker also has a separate plant for exports.

    Honda said in April it was looking to boost car sales in China to 1.07 million cars this year. It sold 1.01 million vehicles in 2015, a 33 percent jump over the previous year.

    Auto sales in China strengthened in September for a consecutive fifth month, rising to a three-and-a-half year high.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Tesla rents second space in Korea to go Gangnam-style

    Tesla rents second space in Korea to go Gangnam-style

    Tesla Motors is preparing to open a second showroom in Korea in Gangnam, southern Seoul. Its first will open in the Starfield Hanam shopping mall in Gyeonggi in less than two months.

    A lease on three floors of a five-story building in Cheongdam-dong, 131-11, known as Yeongdongdaero 730 under the new address system, was signed by Tesla Motors Korea on Sept. 1. Tesla will rent the building’s basement, first and second floors through Aug. 31, 2021. The rent is 500 million won ($439,059) for the entire period, the document shows.

    The landlord is Bora Trading, a Seoul-based importer of Italian food products including the De Cecco pasta brand.

    Tesla made it official Sept. 2 that it would open its first Korea showroom in Starfield Hanam, a shopping mall that was opened Sept. 9 by retail giant Shinsegae, by December. The announcement came 10 months after the American electric vehicle pioneer opened an office in Samseong-dong, southern Seoul.

    Second showroom for Korea in a building in Cheongdam-dong, 131-11, 

    Tesla confirmed its rental in Gangnam.

    “We have just registered a building on Yeongdong Boulevard,” said Atsuko Doi, Tesla’s head of communications for Asia Pacific, in an email. She added the company hasn’t “planned in detail how we use it.”

    Regarding rumors among auto enthusiasts in Korea that Tesla may choose not to open the showroom in the 212-square-meter (2,281-square-foot) space in Starfield Hanam, she described them as “incorrect.”

    When visited on Monday by the Korea JoongAng Daily, the space Tesla has rented from Bora Trading was already under remodeling. Previously an Italian restaurant, the old interior was torn down completely. One of the workers on the scene said they are working on an automobile showroom without elaborating further. The process is expected to be finished in a month, which would indicate it could open in November at the earliest.

    There is speculation Tesla will open two showrooms simultaneously. The one in Gangnam will be more symbolic of Tesla’s attempt to be considered a luxury brand.

    Cheongdam-dong is Seoul’s swankiest area full of luxury-brand stores including Dior, Cartier and Hermes. Showrooms for Lamborghini, Ferrari and Bentley are less than 1 kilometer from Tesla’s space. Korea’s top automaker, Hyundai Motor, is scheduled to complete by 2021 a 105-story new headquarters just 1.6 kilometers farther down Yeongdong Boulevard.

    The building in Gangnam has been optimized to serve as a car showroom. It was established in 2004 by KUZ Plus, which was the official importer of Ferrari and Maserati until 2006. The floors are framed by huge glass windows to display vehicles.

    In Asia, the California-based company led by business magnate Elon Musk opened its first showroom in October 2010 in Tokyo’s trendy Aoyama district. Now there are three in Japan. Tesla runs 21 stores in China, three in Hong Kong and one in Taiwan, which opened in July.

     

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Mazda to leave Indonesia, hands distribution to Eurokars

    Mazda to leave Indonesia, hands distribution to Eurokars

    Mazda Motor Corporation has appointed Eurokars Motor Indonesia, a member of Eurokars Group, as the distributor of Mazda vehicles in Indonesia following its decision to leave the country.

    Eurokars Group spokesperson Angeline Tan said Mazda’s distribution network of 45 dealers would be officially transferred from Mazda Motor Indonesia to Eurokars Indonesia in February.

    “This appointment represents a significant milestone for Eurokars Group. It also reflects the synergistic partnership between Mazda Motor Corporation and Eurokars Group, which is well-positioned to run the distributorship,” she said in a press statement in Jakarta on Friday.

    Following the official transfer, she added, Eurokars would take over existing staff members and dealers currently under Mazda Indonesia. It will also be responsible for after-sales including the warranties of all Mazda vehicles sold by Mazda Indonesia prior to the transfer.

    Founded in 1985, Eurokars was a dealer for Mazda cars in Indonesia in 2007 and took over the distribution of Mazda vehicles in Singapore in 2011.

    From November, Mazda Indonesia’s business entity will be changed from a sole distributor to an importer of the Japan-based Mazda Motor Corporation’s products in related to the business decision.

    Lees ook:

  • Astra named best Indonesian company of past decades

    Astra named best Indonesian company of past decades

    PT Astra International has added one more award to its collection after Hong Kong-based magazine FinanceAsia named the widely diversified business group the best non-financial company in Indonesia for the past two decades.

    The magazine’s publisher, Jonathan Hirst, presented the award to Astra International president director Prijono Sugiarto at a ceremony in Hong Kong on Thursday evening.

    The award was based on polls conducted annually on the company’s performance over the past 20 years. As many as 115 financial and non-financial companies in Asia received such awards this year.

    Other large corporations named as best non-financial companies in their respective countries include Samsung Electronics of South Korea, China Telecom of China, PTT of Thailand and SingTel of Singapore.

    Meanwhile, in the Indonesian financial sector, five companies won similar awards. They include Bank Mandiri, which was named the best domestic bank, Mandiri Sekuritas as the best domestic investment bank and as the best domestic bond house, Danareksa Sekuritas as the best domestic equity house, HSBC as the best foreign bank and Credit Suisse as the best foreign investment bank.

    “On behalf of the Astra management, we thank all the stakeholders who have participated in the survey for their support for Astra during its 59 years of operations,” Prijono said after receiving the award.

    “Obviously, we hope that this achievement also brings pride to the Indonesian people, “ he added.

    According Prijono, as a national asset, Astra wants to continue to contribute to economic and social development for the Indonesian people through its 202 subsidiaries and affiliated companies, which employed more than 200,000 people. The business group was working with at least 2,500 vendors employing more than one million employees, he said.

    Astra is engaged in six business lines, namely automotive, financial services, heavy equipment and mining, agribusiness, infrastructure, logistics and IT.

    Astra was listed on the Indonesian Stock Exchange in April 1990 and has become a blue chip stock with a market capitalization of about Rp 337 trillion (US$25.8 billion) as of Oct. 12.

    FinanceAsia has presented awards to leading Asian companies every year since its establishment 20 years ago. Winners are determined by surveys among investors and analysts in Asia on a range of criteria, such as corporate performance, corporate governance, investor relations, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and leadership.

    Astra has received at least 13 awards from the magazine, in addition to numerous awards from other organizations. Unlike in previous years, this year’s award was given for the achievement over a 20-year period.

    In 2010, Astra management under the leadership of Prijono adopted a comprehensive business strategy it calls the Triple P Roadmap, according to which the company’s portfolio, people and public contribution should all ensure sustainable growth.

    Prijono attributed the success of the business group in maintaining sustainable growth to the company’s long-term business concept.

    Based on that concept, Astra had implemented concrete programs that clearly highlight the position of Astra in the long-term, including by creating new opportunities to diversify sources of revenue, to improve the competency of human resources and to expand the reach of the company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities.

    Prijono explained that Astra carried out CSR activities through all of its subsidiaries and nine foundations, which include the foundation of Toyota and Astra, the foundation of Dharma Bhakti Astra, the foundation of Astra Bina Science, the foundation of Astra Honda Motor, the foundation of Amaliah Astra, the educational foundation of Michael D. Ruslim, the foundation of Karya Bhakti UT, the foundation of Astra Agro Lestari and the foundation of Insan Mulia Pama.

  • Hyundai Motor reaches tentative wage deal with South Korean union

    Hyundai Motor reaches tentative wage deal with South Korean union

    Hyundai Motor reached a tentative wage pact with its South Korean labor union on Wednesday after the worst strikes in the automaker’s history disrupted output at its domestic production base.

    The agreement is subject to a vote by almost 50,000 union members on Thursday, who rejected an earlier deal in August because of it was less generous than the previous year’s package.

    The union has held 24 rounds of full-scale or partial strikes since July 19, preventing the automaker from making 131,851 vehicles worth more than 2.9 trillion won ($2.60 billion), the government said last week.

    “The company and the union have formed a common ground that we should prevent further catastrophe as a prolonged strike has had a substantial impact on not only the company but the regional and national economy,” Hyundai Motor said in a statement.

    Under the latest agreement, Hyundai will increase basic monthly pay by 72,000 won; give each worker a one-off payment of 3.3 million won as well as bonus and incentives payments worth 3.5 times their basic monthly wage; and each worker will also receive 10 Hyundai shares, the company said.

    The deal came after the government threatened to intervene to suspend strike action, criticizing the union for walkouts despite relatively high wages at the automaker.

    The prolonged labor disputes coupled with sluggish domestic demand have prompted some analysts to cut earnings forecasts for the July to September quarter which the company is scheduled to report late this month.

    Twelve out of 25 net profit estimates have been revised down in the past 30 days, pushing the average estimate 12 percent lower, according to Thomson Reuters StarMine.

    Hyundai Motor, which is the world’s fifth-biggest carmaker including affiliate Kia Motors (000270.KS), has been hit by strikes in all but four of the union’s 29-year history though it usually made up for lost production by the end of each year.

    Lees ook:

  • Nissan recalls 932 units of Datsun redi-Go in India

    Nissan recalls 932 units of Datsun redi-Go in India

    Japanese auto major Nissan is recalling 932 units of entry level car redi-Go from its Datsun brand in India to fix faulty fuel system.

    “Datsun is conducting a voluntary recall campaign on certain India-manufactured Datsun redi-GO vehicles to inspect the fuel hose and fix a clip at no cost to the customer,” Nissan Motor India said in a statement.

    Datsun will start notifying affected owners from this month.

    The recall will affect units manufactured till May 18, 2016, a company official said.

    The redi-GO hit the market on June 7 this year and has sold over 14,000 units.

    Lees ook:

  • Daimler Trucks to increase its sales activities in core market Indonesia

    Daimler Trucks to increase its sales activities in core market Indonesia

    Daimler Trucks, the world’s leading truck manufacturer with a strong foothold in Asia, is enhancing its position in commercial vehicles in its core market Indonesia. The Daimler Trucks subsidiary FUSO (Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation, MFTBC), Mitsubishi Corporation (MC), Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC), and the Indonesian company PT Krama Yudha (KY) have signed a respective framework agreement. As part of this agreement, the Indonesian trade and sales partner PT Krama Yudha Tiga Berlian Motors (KTB) will focus exclusively on selling FUSO brand commercial vehicles. KTB’s passenger car business will be transferred to an independent legal entity. At the same time, FUSO will increase its stake in the newly structured company KTB from 18 to 30 percent.

    Dr. Wolfgang Bernhard, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG for Daimler Trucks & Buses: “By increasing our stake in our partner KTB, we are underlining the importance of the Indonesian market and can be even more active locally. Concentrating our sales activities completely on the commercial vehicle market fits perfectly into our Daimler Trucks strategy of consistently focusing on the needs of our customers. With this shift, we as market leader are positioning ourselves in order to continue to tap market potential in Indonesia in the best way possible.”

    Marc Llistosella, President and CEO of Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation and Head of Daimler Trucks Asia: “With our FUSO brand we have been the clear market leader in Indonesia for over 40 years. By increasing our stake in KTB, we can expand on our position even further.”

    With a current market share of about 47 percent, FUSO has been leading the Indonesian market for 46 years in a row since 1970. The country is the largest export market for the FUSO brand. The light duty truck Fuso Canter, which is sold under the name FUSO Colt Diesel, is the absolute top-seller in Indonesia.

    The current restructuring of KTB results in the following shareholder composition: FUSO (MFTBC) holds 30 percent, Krama Yudha (KY) 40 percent and Mitsubishi Corporation (MC) 30 percent. The overall transaction is subject to customary conditions precedent including merger control clearances.

    KTB will serve as dedicated wholesaler and distributor of FUSO vehicles in the Indonesian market and will continue to hold its stake in the related production business, which is responsible for vehicle assembly in Indonesia.

    For Daimler Trucks, this transaction is another important step forward in implementing its strategy of global and consistent orientation towards the requirements of commercial vehicle customers. To this end, Daimler Trucks is partially repositioning its sales and service organizations around the world with a clear focus on the commercial vehicle business. Daimler Trucks is thereby putting regional and national customer orientation at the center of its operations.

    Indonesia has a population of about 250 million people, of which 70 percent are under the age of 40. In 2016, the annual GDP growth rate is at 5.1 percent. The middle class is forecasted to expand to more than 140 million people by the year 2020. Indonesia is the world’s fourth most populous country with growth prospects, which are expected to be supported by a large number of infrastructure projects in the near future. It can be assumed that the infrastructure sector will expand further and result in an increasing demand for commercial vehicles.

  • New Mitsubishi Distributor to Boost Sales Operations in Indonesia

    New Mitsubishi Distributor to Boost Sales Operations in Indonesia

    Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) and business partners Mitsubishi Corporation (MC), PT Krama Yudha (KY) and Mitsubishi FUSO Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC) reached a basic agreement on restructuring MMC-brand vehicle sales operations in Indonesia in order to strengthen their Indonesian operating base.

    Under the basic agreement, the current distributor PT Krama Yudha Tiga Berlian Motors (KTB) will be split into MMC and MFTBC brands and a new distributor dedicated to the MMC brand will be set up. The new distributor will enhance MMC’s passenger car sales organization in Indonesia through promoting areas such as branding, sales personnel training, improving the quality of after-sales services and building up the dealer network. The new company is due to start sales operations in April 2017.

    MMC, in partnership with MC and KY began automobile production and sales in 1970 and since then business has grown focusing mainly on commercial vehicle sales.

    To meet further expected growth in the Indonesian passenger car market, MMC is preparing to commence production in April 2017 in a new factory at Mitsubishi Motors Krama Yudha Indonesia (MMKI). In October 2017, MMC also plans to start production of a new compact MPV segment model for which there is a large demand in Indonesia.

    MMC will work to further expand profits in Indonesia through expanding its model lineup, moving its focus from small commercial vehicles to passenger vehicles, strengthening the sales aspect with the new MMC brand-focused distributor in addition to production through the new factory at MMKI and new product.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Toyota recalls 340,000 Priuses globally to fix parking brake issue

    Toyota recalls 340,000 Priuses globally to fix parking brake issue

    Toyota Motor Corp said on Wednesday it was recalling around 340,000 of its latest Prius gasoline hybrid model in Japan and overseas to fix a parking brake issue.

    The recall covers models produced between October 2015 and October 2016, and affects around 210,000 vehicles in Japan and 92,000 in North America, Toyota said, adding that the balance would be recalled in Europe, Australia and other regions.

    No accidents have been reported in Japan in connection with the issue, a Toyota spokeswoman said, while declining to comment on whether any accidents had occurred overseas.

    Lees ook: