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Tag: automotives

  • Excess car demand for Tet holiday drives prices up in Vietnam

    Excess car demand for Tet holiday drives prices up in Vietnam

    The surge in demand for cars before the Lunar New Year means customers have to wait or pay extra to get immediate delivery. With only weeks to go for the Lunar New Year Festival (Tet), which falls on February 5 this year, consumers are rushing to order automobiles leading to a shortage in the market. They either have to wait for a long time for delivery or, for quick delivery, opt for accessories which can cost an extra VND70-150 million ($3,013-6,458).

    For instance, Hyundai SUV Santa Fe requires an extra VND70-160 million ($3,013-6,887), which is 7-16.1 percent above the minimum listed price, while for the Toyota Fortuner it is VND100-150 million ($4,305-6,457). But most customers will have to wait until March for delivery if they signed the purchase agreement last November or later.

    The only way to get guaranteed delivery before Tet is to buy from someone who signed earlier, car dealers said, explaining that a dealership only gets around 20 units in each model per month but demand is two to three times that number.

    The shortage is because of difficulties in importing at the beginning of 2018 as a result of a new regulation tightening imports, Tran Thanh Binh, director of Thanh Binh Automobile Import Export Trading Service Co Ltd, said.

    The regulation stipulates that traders are only permitted to import if they can provide valid vehicle registration certificates issued by authorities from the countries of origin.

    Original quality control certificates for each vehicle and letters of authorization regarding recalls of defective vehicles from the manufacturers are also required, along with copies of quality assurance certificates provided by the countries of origin.

    “This made companies stop ordering from factories in Indonesia and Thailand. The second half of 2018, however, with these difficulties resolved, businesses have started to order again. But, since the factories also produce for many other markets, Vietnam was not able to order enough,” he explained.

    Vietnam imported 6,362 cars, including 4,264 personal cars, 1,820 trucks in the first 15 days of 2019, according to Vietnam Customs.

  • Korea’s auto exports on the rise, but local industry still struggling

    Korea’s auto exports on the rise, but local industry still struggling

    Attractive prices and returns have seen the number of Chinese customers buying high-end apartments in HCMC soar this year. Duong Thuy Dung, senior director of real estate market research firm CBRE Vietnam, said at a recent forum that 31 percent of high-end apartment buyers in HCMC in the first nine months were Chinese. This figure increased from only 2 percent in 2016 and 4 percent last year.

    In the last two years, Chinese were sixth among all buyers, but this year, they have surpassed Vietnamese to rank first.

    Only 24 percent of high-end home buyers are Vietnamese, CBRE data shows.

    Stephen Wyatt, country head of property service firm JLL Vietnam, said the number of Chinese buyers has been increasing because Vietnam has an attractive price compared to other markets like Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan.

    Chinese people often compare prices in Vietnam with Shanghai when they buy properties, he said, adding that they hope to gain profit from higher property prices in Vietnam in the future.

    A high-end apartment in the city costs around $5,000 per square meter, but the same one in Hong Kong could cost four times, said Nguyen Khanh Duy, director of residential sales at real estate service provider Savills HCMC.

    Nguyen Hoang, director of research and development at real estate firm DKRA, said that the number of Chinese and South Korean buyers in HCMC started to increase last year.

    Chinese from Shanghai and Hong Kong are buying properties as investments (not to stay in). “Most projects that foreigners bought in the last two years are under construction,” he said.

    Other industry insiders said that the high returns that HCMC high-end apartments offer is attracting many foreign buyers.

    The rate of return is 5-6.5 percent in Thao Dien ward and Thu Thiem Peninsula in District 2, while in other Asian countries, this rate is only 3.7-5.2 percent, Duy said.

    CBRE senior director Dung added that it was not just Chinese, but foreign buyers in general who are showing an increasing interest in HCMC real estate.

    Dung said that each foreigner group has a different preference for high-end apartments. Customers from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan prefer large-scale projects near the downtown HCMC.

    South Koreans like to buy apartments in the southern District 7 that hosts a large community of South Koreans, while Western buyers often look for a quieter lifestyle in eastern District 2.

    Dung said HCMC is estimated to receive 40,000 new apartments in the 2018-2020 period, 60-70 percent of these in the high-end segment.

    In the last three years 35,000 luxury apartments have come into the market, CBRE said.

    This is a major increase from 2012-2014 when fewer than 10,000 units were on offer, CBRE said.

  • KDB to pay GM Korea by the end of the month

    KDB to pay GM Korea by the end of the month

    The state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB) said Thursday it will complete its injection of $750 million into the Korean unit of General Motors later this month, ending a controversy over GM Korea’s plan to spin off its research unit. The KDB and GM signed a deal in May on the rescue package for GM Korea.

    Under the agreement, the KDB pledged to inject $750 million, while GM agreed to provide $3.6 billion in fresh loans to keep GM Korea afloat.

    The condition to the additional investment was that GM would keep its Korean operation open for a minimum of 10 years.

    In June, the KDB injected $375 million into GM Korea, but the bank said the remaining half may not be provided amid concerns that the U.S. carmaker may keep only its research facility in Korea and eventually shut down its manufacturing facilities here.

    KDB Chairman Lee Dong-gull in October told lawmakers that the remaining investment may not be executed, depending on policy decision.

    The KDB’s decision came after GM Korea submitted details of its spin-off plan to the bank, the second-largest shareholder of GM Korea.

    The KDB has a 17-percent stake in GM Korea.

    The KDB said it will buy about 11.9 million preferred shares of GM Korea for 404.5 billion won ($360 million), or 33,932 won per share.

    The transaction will be made on Dec. 26, the KDB said.

    The May agreement prohibits GM from selling any stake in GM Korea over the next five years and limits GM’s right to sell shares or assets in GM Korea for 10 years.

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  • October Singapore retail sales static

    October Singapore retail sales static

    October Singapore retail sales inched up by 0.5 per cent year on year, after excluding motor vehicle sales from the data.

    Month-on-month they fell by 2.1 per cent, reaching S$3.7 billion (US$2.69 billion).

    Online retail sales breached the 5 per cent threshold of total retail sales at 5.3 per cent for October.

    By category, sales by petrol stations soared the most, up 11.4 per cent year on year, however when the effects of price changes was removed from the data, the increase was a more moderate 1.5 per cent.

    Sales of medical goods and toiletries rose 3.4 per cent on the back of cosmetics, with furniture and homewares up 1.5 per cent.

    In contrast, sales in department stores and supermarkets decreased 3.6 per cent and 2.9 per cent respectively. Retailers of optical goods and books and recreational goods declined by 1.9 per cent and 1.8 per cent.

    Sales of food and beverage services rose 1.1 per cent, with food caterers recording a 5.6 per cent increase in turnover, other eating places (such as cafes) improving by 3.8 per cent, and fast-food outlets by 3.2 per cent.

    Restaurant turnover, however, was down 3 per cent.

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  • Grandeur is likely to be Korea’s 2018 best-selling car

    Grandeur is likely to be Korea’s 2018 best-selling car

    As a result of its successful attempt to attract younger drivers with a new design and cost effectiveness, Hyundai Motor’s large Grandeur sedan is likely to be the best-selling car in Korea for a second consecutive year. Its hybrid engine largely contributed to the triumph.

    The Grandeur IG sold a total of 102,682 in Korea units as of the end of November, becoming the first and only model this year to surpass the 100,000 mark.

    The sales figure fell slightly, however, compared to the 123,000 units sold last year during the same period.

    Hyundai Motor said the Grandeur’s hybrid engine towed sales for the model. In November, a total of 2,302 Grandeur Hybrids have been sold, the highest monthly sales since its launch.

    Closely trailing behind in second is Hyundai Motor’s large Santa Fe SUV, which climbed up eight spots from No. 10 last year.

    Last year, the Santa Fe sold a total of 54,334 units in Korea. After launching a fully revamped version early this year and riding on a global trend to prefer SUVs, a total of 98,559 Santa Fes have been sold this year, according to the carmaker.

    With the Grandeur pulling in the younger generation, its midsize Sonata sedan is losing ground.

    The Sonata, which was either the bestseller or runner up for more than five consecutive years, tumbled to the third spot last year among all passenger cars in Korea.

    This year, the midsize sedan tumbled to sixth, selling a little more than 60,000 units.

    The top 10 spots were all taken by either Hyundai Motor or its smaller affiliate Kia Motors.

    The other three Korean carmakers – GM Korea, Renault Samsung Motors and SsangYong Motor – struggled to sell their cars to Korean consumers. Internal issues and a lack of new vehicles has largely contributed to the automaker’s struggle.

    SsangYong Motor’s best-selling model was the small Tivoli SUV, which sold a total of 39,330 units as of the end of November. GM Korea’s best-selling car was the compact Spark, which sold a total of 34,616 units during the same period. For Renault Samsung Motors, which didn’t launch any new passenger car model this year, its best-selling model was the QM6 SUV, which sold a total of 28,180 units as of November.

    It was Mercedes-Benz’s year when it came to imports. The E300 4MATIC line topped the ranks as of the end of November, selling 8,336 units followed by the E300 trim with 7,816 units.

    In the third spot was Lexus’ hybrid ES300h, which sold 7,805 units. BMW’s 520d, which was the most popular import last year, was hurt by the burning engine crisis over the summer and fell to fourth spot with 7,668 units in sales.

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  • Renault to start making Twizy cars in Korea from next year

    Renault to start making Twizy cars in Korea from next year

    Renault Samsung Motors, the Korean unit of French carmaker Renault S.A., is planning to start producing the Twizy ultra-small electric car in its sole domestic plant next year, industry sources said Monday. Renault Samsung, Busan Metropolitan City, and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy are expected to sign an initial agreement this month to begin manufacturing Twizys, which are classified as heavy quadricycles in some countries, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said.

    He said assembly will begin “sometime during the 2019” at the carmaker’s plant in Busan, some 453 kilometers (281.5 miles) southeast of Seoul.

    This year, Renault Samsung has sold most of the 1,000 Twizys that were produced in its parent Renault’s plant in Valladolid, Spain, and shipped to Korea, a company spokesman said.

    The company plans to roll out up to 15,000 Twizys annually for domestic sales and exports to Asian markets, another person familiar with the matter said.

    Renault Samsung didn’t confirm the plan.

  • BTS to promote new Hyundai Palisade SUV

    BTS to promote new Hyundai Palisade SUV

    Global K-pop sensation BTS has been chosen as the face of Hyundai Motor’s new large Palisade SUV, which will premiere at the upcoming LA Auto Show. The carmaker said Tuesday that it has appointed the seven-member boy band as the global ambassadors for the vehicle. The group will introduce the car in a video to be shown at the auto show today.

    According to Hyundai Motor, the group’s explanation will focus on the large SUV’s spacious interior and the convenient features found throughout its three rows of seats.

    “Hyundai Motor appointed BTS as the global brand ambassador of the Palisade as the K-pop group was considered the most suitable to introduce the new vehicle that is throwing the gauntlet down in the large SUV market,” the company said in a statement Tuesday.

    “The group will be able to deliver the greatly spacious interior of the Palisade, which is able to accompany seven to eight people.”

    Hyundai Motor said it would live stream the premiere on the automaker’s Facebook page. It will also post a range of videos featuring BTS and the Palisade on its social media accounts.

  • The Longines Masters of Hong Kong is back

    The Longines Masters of Hong Kong is back

    Anticipation is building as the countdown to the new Season of the Longines Masters Series enters its final stage. The new season of the international Show Jumping Series will start in Paris, home to the European leg of the Grand Slam Indoor of Show Jumping, on November 29 – December 2, 2018 before it continues its journey across continents to Hong Kong on February 15 – 17, 2019, at AsiaWorld Expo and New York on April 25 – 28, 2019.

    Together with Title Partner and Official Timekeeper Longines and hosted by Founding Partner the Hong Kong Jockey Club, EEM held a Press Conference in Hong Kong this week to kick off the seventh edition of the Longines Masters of Hong Kong, alongside its official partners.

    The Longines Masters of Hong Kong attracts each year the best Show Jumping horses and riders on the planet for three days in six competitions, created course designed by Frank Rothenberger, for a total prize money of US$ 680,620.

    For the first time, show jumping riders from Asia will compete in a world class event alongside the international stars of the sport.

    An array of exhibitors will be present from the likes of Longines who will present time pieces at their boutique.

    A dedicated equestrian corner will bring together the likes of Kingsland, Fieldstone, Horse Pilot and Equict.

    Hermès Sellier will invite visitors to experience the brands historic equestrian goods.

    Technology and art will also be featured with the Maserati Simulation Driving Experience

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