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| INDUSTRY Nano launches Monday, wait not over yet Tatas eyeing 10 lakh Nano bookings in two weeks Nano's delivery may normalise only in June Big hype, likely small profits as Tata set to roll out Nano Nano launch Indica-tes winter of '98 Jaguar Land Rover begins cutting management jobs Recovery of auto sales imminent: Mahindra Now, banks to pay for forcible seizure of car INTERVIEWS/FEATURES 'Monthly comparisons may not reflect the real status': CEO & MD, Mercedes-Benz India CARS, SUVs, MUVs Ultra Motor plans to set up assembly unit in NCR Efforts to reduce cost of ownership working: Ford COMMERCIAL VEHICLES CONSTRUCTION & 1AGRI MACHINERY | ALLIED INDUSTRIES FINANCE & INSURANCE Mahindra, Tata Motors in vehicle finance pact with BoB LUBRICANTS & ALTERNATIVE FUELS INTERNATIONAL NEWS Renault to create jobs in France ECONOMY & FINANCE Sensex ends below 9,000 in volatile trade
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| INDUSTRY Go To Top Chanchal Pal Chauhan & Lijee Philip The Economic Times (Web & Print Edition) New Delhi/Mumbai: With the launch of Nano just days away, speculation over how the eagerly-awaited car will be allotted is at a fever pitch. According to a senior bank executive, bookings for Nano could reach 5 lakh units, which will far exceed Tata Motors current production capacity. According to financiers in the automobile segment, who are working closely with Tata Motors to finalise Nanos mode of allotment, the finer details of the process are yet to be worked out. We have sent a query to Tata Motors on how to go about the bookings for Nano. We have also asked how much of the booking amount will be retained, how customers can deposit their money with us, and the rate of interest on the loan, said a person familiar with the development. Copyright 2009, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Industry/Auto/ NANO LAUNCHES MONDAY, WAIT NOT OVER YET Reuters See this story in: The Financial Express (Web & Print Edition), Asian Age (Web & Print Edition), mint (Web Edition), The Indian Express (Web Edition) Mumbai: Tata Motors will launch the much awaited Nano, slated to be the world's cheapest car at less than $2,000, on Monday but it may be the middle of the year before it is seen on Indian roads. The formal launch comes 15 months after the tiny, snub-nosed car debuted at a glittering world autoshow in Delhi, and is seen as an effort by the leading Indian vehicle maker to meet a deadline it had set to launch in the first quarter of 2009. Bookings will only be taken from the second week of April, with delivery some time after that. "It would take at least until July for the cars to be actually on the roads," a sales manager at Mumbai dealership Fortune Cars said. The car was initially set to go on sale last October, but the main production plant had to be moved to Gujarat on the west coast following land protests in the eastern state of West Bengal. Only about 50,000 cars will be available in the first year, analysts say, until the 250,000-unit capacity in Gujarat comes on stream. "We get a lot of enquiries, all wanting to know about the price, the variants available," said an official at Wasan Motors, another dealer. Tata Motors has provided little details about the Nano to the dealers, but analysts say the cash-strapped company is likely to ask for a deposit of 70,000 rupees on booking. "There has been a lot of hype created around the car," the manager at Fortune Cars said. "Some are genuine customers, others are just curious." http://www.financialexpress.com/news/nano-launches-monday-wait-not-over-yet/437007/ http://www.asianage.com/presentation/leftnavigation/news/business/nano-to-be-launched-on-monday.aspx http://www.livemint.com/2009/03/20162302/Nano-launches-Monday-but-wait.html?h=A1 http://www.indianexpress.com/news/nano-launches-monday-wait-not-over-yet/437007/ TATAS EYEING 10 LAKH NANO BOOKINGS IN TWO WEEKS Harit Mehta The Times of India (Web Edition) Ahmedabad: Tata Motors Nano, the worlds cheapest car, is poised for another milestone. The company is likely to book a whopping 10 lakh cars in the first fortnight starting March 23, company sources said. Copyright 2009, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" NANO'S DELIVERY MAY NORMALISE ONLY IN JUNE Business Standard (Web Edition) Mumbai/Pune/New Delhi: The supply of Tata Motors much-awaited small car, the Nano, is going to be well below the demand for quite some months. The car is to be formally launched on Monday, followed by distribution to the dealers. Bookings are expected to begin from the second week of April. However, the main manufacturing unit, at Sanand in Gujarat, will only be ready by October-November. Till then, the car wil be manufactured at the Tatas facility at Pantnagar in Uttarakhand. The company is examining if a new production line can be added at its Pune factory. The first deliveries are unlikely before June. All in all, sources say, only about 100,000 Nanos can be produced in the first 12 months, well below the expected demand. An official at Pune says the first batch of 1,500 Nanos are ready. By the time bookings begin, we will have another 500-600 units ready for delivery, he said. Tata Motors in-house auto component division, Tata Auto Comp Systems (TACO), with its various subsidiaries and joint ventures, will make a little over 20 per cent of the total components used. TACO has the contracts for manufacturing and supplying batteries, interiors and door handles. The seating systems will be made by Tata Johnson Controls, a joint venture between TACO and Johnson Controls, USA. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/nano/s-delivery-maynormalise-only-in-june/352483/ BIG HYPE, LIKELY SMALL PROFITS AS TATA SET TO ROLL OUT NANO Mint (Delhi Print Edition) New Delhi: When the Nano minicar was conceived by the Tata group in 2003, the conglomerates chairman Ratan Tata said his intent was to provide an affordable, fuel-efficient, safer alternative to the two-wheelers deployed by millions of Indians. The 3.1m-long cars launch on Monday will come at a very different time-for the country, the auto industry and the Tata empire as well. The focus will be as much on whether the Nano will sell big and deliver profits to debtstrapped Tata Motors Ltd as on whether it could spur a transportation revolution on the countrys roads. With an expected price tag of Rs1 lakh for dealers for the basic model, the Nano will be one of the worlds cheapest cars, if not the cheapest. The company has so far declined to discuss details on costs, production plans and profit margins. Its expected to disclose fresh information, such as the monthly production volumes and sales forecasts, on Monday at the launch event in Mumbai. Like auto makers the world over, Tata Motors is contending with slowing demand for its bread-and-butter trucks in India as well as its luxury nameplates, Jaguar and Land Rover. The company plunged to its first quarterly net loss in seven years during the October-December quarter, and saw its debt cut by rating agencies. More pressingly, Tata Motors faces a June deadline to repay $2 billion (Rs10,020 crore) in loans related to its Jaguar-Land Rover acquisition last year. Scrambling to raise money, it sold a 1.37% stake in group company Tata Steel Ltd to Tata Sons Ltd, the parent of both Tata Motors and Tata Steel, for Rs359 crore last year. Tata Motors is also laying plans to sell small stakes in six profitable, unlisted units, according to media reports. Undoubtedly, the Nano, with a 623 cu. cm, rear-petrol engine, symbolizes the global auto industrys rush to embrace affordable, lower-emission vehicles amid the economic expansion of developing nations from India to Brazil. Should the car succeed commercially, it could represent the coming-of-age of modern Indias manufacturing prowess. But going by the auto industrys experience with small cars, the tiny upstart Nano wont be much of a moneyspinner. Manufacturers have traditionally made razor-thin margins on smaller cars, using them to lure buyers only to try to up-sell them to more profitable makes as they grow in age and wealth. Indeed, the Nanos wellpublicized affordability could prove to be a double-edged sword. On the one hand it might draw young and lowerincome buyers. Yet, on the other, it may be too low to significantly improve Tata Motors consolidated revenue and profitability. Even if Tata Motors sells 100,000 Nano cars a year, it will still be insignificant for their overall profit and revenue, said Ambrish Mishra, analyst at Mumbai-based MF Global Sify Securities India Pvt. Ltd. I dont think the car will make a fundamental difference to their financial performance. He doesnt place a rating on Tata Motors shares. Other auto makers are pursuing their own versions of the Nano. Bajaj Auto Ltd, the countrys second biggest motorcycle maker, is developing an inexpensive small car with Nissan Motor Co. Ltd and Renault SA. General Motors Corp. and Volkswagen AG have indicated they may join the low-price bandwagon. Suzuki Motor Corp., which controls half of Indias car market through Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, sells the 0.8-litre Maruti 800. The cheapest car in Indiafor nowit costs nearly twice as much as the Nano. We dont see the Nano as a game-changer. In our current forecast scenario, we are hesitant to think about that, John Bonnell, JD Power and Associates director of forecasting (Asia-Pacific), said. I think the (Rs1 lakh) market price will be difficult to sustain over a long period of time, given there is always a minimum material cost. Bonnell doubts Indias enormous numbers of motorcycle buyers will upgrade to Nanos en masse because its still more than three times the price of a modest two-wheeler and costs more to maintain. Initially, it may have an enthusiastic response, but over time, the operating costs will tend to dampen that enthusiasm a bit, Bonnell said. I think generally its a lot of publicity, its a lot of brand recognition globally than actual volumes. Behind the marketing hoopla, the Nano has had its share of setbacks. Most notably a planned West Bengal manufacturing sitein which Tata Motors had invested Rs1,500 crorewas abandoned last year following violent protests by a political party and farming groups over disputed land. The Nano will now be built, in batches and after a costly three-month delay, at existing Tata plants in Pune and Pantnagar; meantime, the company is investing about Rs2,000 crore to build a dedicated Nano factory in Gujarat. Ratan Tata has said the Gujarat factory will have an initial capacity of 250,000 cars per year; that volume could eventually be doubled. But early production constraints will allow Tata Motors to build little more than 35,000 cars in 2009, Bonnell estimated. Amol Bhutada, an analyst with Edelweiss Securities Ltd in Mumbai, said the Nanos margin of profitability will be at least 5%, reflecting lower commodity prices and the Union governments excise tax cuts on small cars in the past year. However, he noted that the Nano cost structure is based on high volumes. So, only when you make good use of the installed capacities, then you will start making good money on such products, which we believe will come only from fiscal year 2010-11 when we expect them to produce 300,000-400,000 units per year. Added Bhutada, who rates Tata Motors shares as sell: Any kind of impact from the Nano on Tatas consolidated balance sheet would only come after two-three years. NANO LAUNCH INDICA-TES WINTER OF '98 Reeba Zachariah The Times of India (Web & Print Edition) Mumbai: It is a car that is small in size but large on ambition. It's also one that is big on co-incidences. The second home-wrought automobile from the Tatas stable, the similarities between the Nano and its predecessor Indica are numerous. Copyright 2009, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" JAGUAR LAND ROVER BEGINS CUTTING MANAGEMENT JOBS Alka Kshirsagar The Hindu Business Line (Web & Print Edition) Pune: Tata Motors UK-based subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has initiated a voluntary redundancy programme to cut jobs of 600 of its own salaried employees over the next few months, including 300 from the management grade. This is over and above the reduction of 850 jobs late last year. Replying to an e-mail on the subject, a JLR spokesperson said, We do currently have a voluntary redundancy programme for 300 management grade employees, which is in process. He added that the company had also announced a broader voluntary redundancy programme for up to 300 salaried employees that will be introduced over the next few months. Closer home, this is what is usually termed as a voluntary retirement scheme. Staff strength JLR has around 15,000 employees, of whom approximately one-third are salaried. The exact strength of the management staff could not be ascertained but the spokesperson said that the number was relatively small. In November last JLR, which has been on a production cut drive, reduced its requirement for agency support by 850 positions. These were not JLR employees but contracted in from agencies. This programme was unrelated to other actions involving our own employees, the company official said, adding, that they were hopeful of achieving the present goal, but if fewer than 300 were to take up the option the situation would be reviewed at that point. As of there are no Tata Motors employees at JLR and the new parents only presence is in the overall governance board where Mr Ratan Tata and Mr Ravi Kant, Chairman and Managing Director, respectively of Tata Motors Ltd, are Directors. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/03/21/stories/2009032150670200.htm RECOVERY OF AUTO SALES IMMINENT: MAHINDRA Nandini Sen Gupta The Economic Times (Web & Print Edition) New Delhi: Recovery of passenger vehicle sales has already begun and the truck and bus business, too, will stage a turnaround in the next 12 months, Mahindra & Mahindra vice-chairman and managing director Anand Mahindra said. Talking about his group defence initiative, Mr Mahindra said it was in M&Ms DNA because the automotive division started out making vehicles for the Indian Army. The defence vertical is crucial for us; thats why we are investing in it, which includes this new plant. Mahindra Defence Systems inaugurated its special military vehicle facility at Prithla in Faridabad on Thursday. This plant has facilities for specific military manufacturing applications. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News-by-Industry/Auto-sale-to-recover-MM/articleshow/4294904.cms NOW, BANKS TO PAY FOR FORCIBLE SEIZURE OF CAR Agencies See this story in: The Financial Express New Delhi: The Delhi Consumer Commission has directed the HDFC Bank to pay Rs 35,000 as compensation to an export house for forcibly seizing a financed car on its failure to pay two installments. "Whenever any bank resorts to such a method, it is liable to compensate the consumer as to the mental agony, harassment and humiliation suffered by him and return the post-dated cheques," the Commission headed by Justice J D Kapoor said. Dismissing the plea of the bank, the Commission said that it can only charge the unpaid installments and refund the margin money contributed by the capital-based Reliable Exports and Expositions (REE). The Bank approached the Commission against an order of a District Forum directing it to adjust the net depreciated value of the car against its balance principal loan and the unpaid installments along with compensation. The REE purchased the Maruti Esteem in January 2006 after the bank sanctioned the loan of Rs 4.56 lakh. It, however, defaulted the payment of two installments following which the bank forcibly seized the vehicle in July 2006. The Bank claimed that the car was seized in a peaceful manner after obtaining permission from the police authorities. The REE, on the other hand, contended that the act of forcible possession of the car by the bank was illegal, unlawful, arbitrary and absolute violation of settled law. The Commission also noted that the car was sold by the Bank a day before an interim order was passed by the Court restraining it from disposing off the vehicle. The panel upheld the Forum's order and directed the Bank to pay the compensation to the consumer. http://www.financialexpress.com/news/now-banks-to-pay-for-forcible-seizure-of-car/436985/ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| INTERVIEWS/FEATURES Go To Top Admitted its one of the most anticipated launches in the history of Indian automobile industry. The car itself is expected to boost the Indian economy and expand the Indian car market by 65%, according to rating agency Crisil. But given the consumer expectations and the variety on offer, the question is, how will Tata Motors latest offering change the Indian automobile industry? A lot has changed since the time Maruti Suzuki (then Maruti Udyog Ltd) launched the Maruti 800 in the country way back in 1984. Or for that matter since the project to create the worlds cheapest production car began in 2003. For one, the Indian customer is one who is not only well-versed with the happenings in the country but with developments globally, and not ready to compromise on safety and fuel efficiency, points out Abdul Majeed, auto analyst and partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Adds Mudit Gupta, project manager, Datamonitor India, In 1984, the customers were looking for a car which was lighter to manoeuver compared to the Fiat and the Hindustan Motors Ambassador and not just a cheap car. In the case of the Nano it is the price more than anything else. For its price, The Nano is a sweet deal. The car will have an all-aluminium, two-cylinder, 623 cc, multi-point fuel injection (MPFI) petrol engine and is expected to give a mileage of around 20-30 km per litre. It will be available in three petrol variantsone base and two deluxe. The diesel variant of the car will come in later. The car will be on display at select company dealerships from March 24, while bookings will start from second week of April. Over the last few weeks, Tata Motors has tied up with several banks across the country since the car is expected to spurt demand more in the tier-I and tier-II cities of the country. will be more people in the tier-I and tier-II cities, two-wheeler owners, who will like to go for the Nano, says Majeed. According to JD Power Asia Pacific, the demand for Nano would remain modest at just about 35,000 units in 2009 and even next year. Since the promotion and marketing of the Nano will depend mainly on word-of-mouth, the team will have to strike the right cord in the initial months of the launch itself. Around 40,000-50,000 Nano cars can be produced by the company by the year-end from the makeshift plant facility in Pune and Pantnagar (Uttrakhand) till Nanos mother plant at Sanand in Gujarat is built, says VG Ramakrishnan, director, automotive and transportation, Frost & Sullivan, South Asia and Middle East. The challenge, therefore, will be to keep the interest level high till the production issue is resolved. Competition, too, has increased since the time Tata announced his dream to produce a safe, affordable, all-weather form of transport for two-wheeler families. Bajaj Auto has said it is building a small car with Renault and Nissan Motor with a fuel-efficiency twice that of an average small car. Rival carmakers General Motors, Ford Motor, Fiat, Hyundai and Toyota have at some point or another expressed their plans to produce a car for price-sensitive buyers. Sustaining sales will be possible if the company sticks to the price for as long as possible. For now, the company hopes to keep its promise and will be launching the Nano with a sticker price of Rs 1 lakh, which on-road is expected to cost anywhere between Rs 1.2 lakh and Rs 1.6 lakh, including 3.3%-4% insurance, 7% registration, and in case of Mumbai, a 5% octroi. However, the argument of the Nano taking on the 8 million two-wheeler market in the country seems untenable. While a certain percentage of two-wheeler buyers may look at upgrading to four-wheels, one cannot deny the fact that cost of owning a four-wheeler is any day higher than that of a two-wheeler. The fuel cost alone goes up three times. A high-end motorcycle wears a tag of Rs 75,000 on-road and gives a mileage anywhere up to 60 km per litre. Well aware of the advantages of the Nano, two-wheeler makers have started making subtle changes in their communication strategy in recent months, with the focus more on the experience and the lifestyle statement that a motorcycle can make. As they say,... http://www.financialexpress.com/news/on-your-marks-get-set.../437096/3 'MONTHLY COMPARISONS MAY NOT REFLECT THE REAL STATUS': CEO & MD, MERCEDES-BENZ INDIA The Financial Express (Motobahn) Mercedes-Benz, which had ruled the luxury car market in India for more than a decade, managed to sell 315 cars in the January-February period of this year. BMW, the worlds largest luxury car maker, displaced its global arch rival by logging 514 units in the same period. But Wilfried Aulbur, CEO & MD of Mercedes-Benz India, is unperturbed. In New Delhi for the launch of the new sport utility vehicle (SUV) M-Class, Aulbur spoke to FEs Malabika Sarkar about the new launch, the companys expansion and distribution plans and about his expectations from the Indian market. Excerpts: Who is Mercedes M-Class aimed at? How suited is it to Indian market? The M-Class is a premium SUV, ideal for commuting within the concrete jungle, tough Indian roads and is also at home in off roading conditions. Mercedes lost its position as the leading luxury car seller in India in the first two months of 2009 to BMW. Please comment. We would like to stress that monthly comparisons may not reflect the real statusone needs to look at a longer timeframe to determine market realities. The company has lined up an investment of Rs 150 crore. Where do you see this investment going into? This is the planned investment towards upgradation of the existing network and expansion to other cities. Our network philosophy operates on a hub-and-spoke model. The major cities operate the hub where we have dealerships and dealer headquarters. The smaller cities (spokes) are supported by the hubs and have facilities such as service centre and after-sales backup to support customers in that region. We plan to strengthen this network further. You have recently commissioned a plant in Pune. Do you plan to export auto components? We have the global procurement office located out of the same facility in Pune. They work with existing and potential vendors and help them understand the quality and time-related expectations that enable them to become a supplier to Daimler. What is the status of your plans to set up a finance arm in India? We are exploring this opportunity but would not like to comment on the status as of now. Where does India fit in in Mercedes global plans? How has the automobile market slowdown affected the companys performance in India last year? What are your projections for 2009? India is considered among the markets with great potential. With the industry friendly policies of the government, increased money spending... potential of the people and rapidly improving infrastructure, India is well on its way to become one of the powerful economies. Daimler has been aware of Indias potential right since the beginning. The market slowdown is a global phenomenon. These short-term issues will not impact the overall long-term growth story of India. What were the sales figures for the company in 2008? Mercedes-Benz India sold over 3,600 units, thus creating a record growth of over 45% on a year-on-year basis.... http://www.financialexpress.com/news/monthly-comparisons-may-not-reflect-the-real-status/ Bijoy Kumar Y Business Standard (Motoring) Mumbai: If you are the sort who reads balance sheets for fun, you dont have to read this road test. A glance at the big book from Toyota will reveal that they have, more or less, got a grasp of building what we call cars and selling them for good money. Study the Mahindra numbers and you will realise that they have a lot more catching up to do. In short, you will know that Toyota has more knowhow, more money to spend on research and development and hence they make better cars than what the rest of the world manages. They are so good that they regularly invite other car companies to come and learn the art they have perfected. Lots of car companies try hard and fail since they cannot stomach the fish soup that Toyota force-feeds their employees every morning. Alright, that was a very poor joke. But the fact remains that Mahindra (or any other car maker in the whole world) was not going to design and develop a people mover from scratch that can beat the Toyota Innova, first time out. And we have news they havent. But Mahindra knows something about frugal engineering (as lauded by Carlos Ghosn and Renault) that Toyota cannot concentrate on thanks to the global nature of their thinking process. That means Mahindra was able to coax their suppliers to bring the price down without sacrificing on quality and pass it on to buyers. The difference between the cars you see on this page the top-end Xylo and a well-loaded Innova is close to Rs 4 lakh. Even the cheapest Innova on sale is more expensive than the most expensive Xylo. Phew. Sure, even the top-end Xylo does not offer airbags and ABS, but otherwise it has almost every bell and whistle that the Toyota has and then some. Toyota seemed to have sensed the new-found competition and did spruce up their ace during the recent facelift. New grille, new front and rear bumpers and lighting fixtures have resulted in a more personal looking Innova - especially in metallic greys and dark red (two of the four new shades on offer). New instrumentation, a multi information display, a 12-volt charger unit (at last) and steering mounted controls for the audio system make up the changes inside the Innova. And the reverse assist helps you park the bulk more easily now. The Innova is a better, more complete form to look at, while the Xylo looks truncated and influenced by too many thought processes and design schools. In short, the Innova is a good van to look at while the Xylo tries to be an SUV and an MPV at the same time and falls into a deep crevice somewhere in between. Both cars feature good fit and finish and it is indeed creditable that the Mahindra offering can stand up to a Toyota in this front. The Toyota interior may look plain Jane, but there is a certain degree of quality that is omnipresent. In comparison, the Xylo interior is over designed and is not in the same quality league when it comes to plastics and finish. The arm-rests, for example, are not aligned to each other and are operated by a press and pull mechanism that is not human friendly. Where it excels though is in the interior space department the Xylo was designed inside-out and it shows. Unlike the Innova, the third row occupants do have adequate head and leg room while the third row of the Innova is only for the benefit of children or not-so-tall people. The seats of the Xylo are comparable to the Innova and are equally comfortable over long runs. Both are long-haul specialists and feature diesel engines that are meant to stay relaxed over long periods of time. The double-overhead cam 2494cc diesel that lives under the bonnet of the Innova is laser proof when it comes to reliability and offers considerable refinement for a vehicle of its class. It is good for 102 bhp at 3600 rpm and develops 20 kgm of torque between 1400 and 3400 rpm. The mEagle CRDe motor that has been assigned to the Xylo has been tested thoroughly and Mahindra engineers say the engines, with proper care, can easily do 2 lakh km before requiring serious work. This 2498cc four-pot motor has more power and torque than the Innova, at 112 bhp and 24 kgm. The difference came through as we ran both the machines fitted with our Vbox equipment. The Xylo showed what good old torque and horsepower can do, and did a 6.2 second 60 kph sprint and managed a 100 kph run in just 16.4 seconds. Those are impressive numbers for a diesel van, mind you. The Innova, on the other hand, had to stay in the Xylos dust trail through the rev range and managed only 7.4 seconds for 60 kph and a rather slow 20.1 seconds for the 100 kph run. Start both cars from the same point and accelerate hard and you will realise that the Innova does not stand a chance as the Xylo rockets to its 164.9 kph top speed. The Innova, with its additional bulk, tries hard and just about manages to nudge the 150 kph mark. Top speed and acceleration are not important in the market that these machines operate in, but the ability to overtake is important, and the Xylo and the Innova are almost level in this regard. In short, what the Innova loses in the acceleration and top speed fronts, it regains with critical driveability thanks to the torque spread that can be compared to that of the Xylo motor. Our road tests proved that both cars returned an identical 9-13 kmpl depending on the way one drove (only highway runs will yield better mileage though). Where the Innova wins handsomely is in the dynamics department. Despite the body- on-chassis architecture, this Toyota behaves like a large sedan rather than a van. There is practically no pitch or body roll to complain of, while the Xylo tends to respond like a cradle to the slightest of brake or accelerator inputs. After a while behind the wheel, you will be piloting the Innova just like a rear-wheel driven sedan even carrying a good amount of speed into corners. The 205/65 R 15 tubeless radials complement good road handling and are a nice enough accomplice when you want to carry eight-odd passengers and their luggage and still manage decent average speeds. Better body control also translates to less fatigue to the passengers, and that is a reason why people ask for Innovas when they hire vehicles (ditto the Volvo buses). The Xylo is much more sorted out than the Scorpio when it comes to dynamics, but its road manners get exposed when driven back-to-back with an Innova. What the Xylo is good at and beats the Innova hands down is in the off-roading department. As our pics explain, we did an impromptu off-road hill climb with both these cars. To be honest, the terrain belonged to genuine 4WD articles, but we decided to see whether these two could reach the precariously mounted Siddheshwar temple (off Thane, Maharashtra on the way to Nashik). The road was incredibly loose and steep and the Innova struggled a great deal yet reached the top. The Xylos SUV genes and 215/75 R15 all - terrain Bridgestones came to life and it ran up the mountain like a goat. It even looked like one while at it, but thats another matter all together. The Innova is a more sorted out vehicle here and one that should win our road test comparison. But as you have seen, the Xylo can seat as many, cover distances at ease, can out perform the Innova effortlessly and it costs way less. If you are buying the Innova as an alternative to a sedan, you should go ahead with the decision since you do get safety features. Most other buyers, fleet operators included, will look at the entry-price advantage who can negate the Rs 2 to 4 lakh savings? Normally, our road testers dont consider the price-tag when proclaiming a winner of a shootout. But in this case, Mahindra has out-numbered Toyota, if not outwitted them. Mahindra beat Toyota is not something you would normally hear, but here it is. The Toyota Innova is certainly the better car, but the Mahindra Xylo is definitely a better buy. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/finallychallenger/352435/ Sumit Arora The Financial Express (Motobahn) Growing environmental concerns and unstable oil prices are forcing governments globally to diversify energy sources and explore alternative ways to meet energy needs. Even in India there is an underlying urgency to usher in cleaner and sustainable energy resources to sustain economic growth. In India, the pursuit of greener fuels has led to a focus on CNG, LPG, ethanol-blended fuel, biodiesel, hydrogen energy and electric vehicles. In the short term, the major focus by various state governments has been on CNG and LPG. In Delhi, all public buses, auto-rickshaws and taxis have been successfully converted to CNG. Its an accepted fact that CNG leads to a significant reduction in pollutioncarbon monoxide emissions are more than 70% less for auto-rickshaws and more than 90% lesser for petrol passenger cars. Twenty cities across the country are expected to be covered by CNG by 2010. There are currently more than 4 lakh CNG/LPG vehicles in India, with increasing number of private buyers now entering the fold. The government is currently implementing an ethanol-blending programme and considering initiatives in the form of mandates for biodiesel. Due to these strategies and the growing energy demand from the transport sector, biofuels can be assured of a significant market in India. On September 12, 2008, government announced its National Biofuel Policy. It aims to meet 20% of Indias diesel demand with fuel derived from plants. Ethanol can be used as an automotive fuel by itself and can be mixed with gasoline to form what has been called gasohol. Over one billion gallons of ethanol are blended with gasoline every year in the US. Because the ethanol molecule contains oxygen, it allows the engine to burn the fuel completely, resulting in better efficiency. Since ethanol is produced from plants that harness the power of the sun, it is also considered a renewable fuel. In the first phase of the project, ethanol-blended petrol is being supplied through retail outlets in nine States and four Union Territories. Petrol blended with 5% ethanol would be supplied by petrol pumps all over the country under the second phase towards the end of the year. Ethanol blending would be increased to 10% in the third phase of the programme. The main criticism for Ethanol is the diversion of viable agricutltural land from production of food crops to fuel crops, which may lead to spiraling of food prices. The most politically and morally acceptable choice currently seems to be biofuel... development through cultivation and processing of Jatropha plant seeds, which are rich in oil. Jatropha provides immediate economic benefits at the local level since it grows well in dry marginal non-agricultural lands, thereby allowing villagers and farmers to leverage non-farm land for income generation. And since Jatropha oil is carbon-neutral, large-scale production will improve the countrys carbon emissions profile. The author is associate director and head of Synovate Motoresearch... http://www.financialexpress.com/news/alternative-fuels/437102/2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| CARS, SUVs, MUVs Go To Top Yogima Seth The Financial Express (Web & Print Edition) See similar story in: Yahoo India (Web Edition) New Delhi: General Motors India, it seems, is shifting gears: from manufacturers of bigger sedans and sport utility vehicles, the company's focus seems to be shifting to smaller cars. This is evident as the company is losing grip in the mid-size and executive car category, where it is present through Chevrolet Aveo and Chevrolet Optra respectively. While GM Indias market share in the compact car segment has gone up from 3.65% in April last year to 4.14% in February this year, in the case of the executive category (Chevrolet Optra), it has come down from 12.6% in April to 3.04%. In the mid-size sedan category (Chevrolet Aveo), the companys share has slipped from 1.91% to 0.63%. GM India had forayed into the domestic market with Chevrolet Forester, a high-end sports utility vehicle, followed by Chevrolet Optra. There is a steep competition in these two categories (executive and mid-size sedan). Since GM India has not reworked its product portfolio in the segment for quite some time, the company has failed to draw attention of buyers, who are more attracted to new products like Honda City, Maruti SX4 and Swift Dzire, which have a well-established brand equity in the market, said Vaishali Jajoo, senior auto research analyst, Angel Broking. According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, on a year-on-year basis, sales of Aveo have gone down by 64.27% in February at 149 units, as against 417 units in the corresponding month last year. Sales of Optra have declined by 75.28% at 89 units last month, vis--vis 360 units in February last year. The two segments have, however, seen an increase in sales on the whole. The mid-size sedan segment, which includes Honda City, Maruti SX4 and Dzire, and Tata Indigo, has seen a jump of 45.1% in sales at 23,768 units in February, as compared to 16,381 units in the same month last year. Likewise, the executive car category, which includes Fiat Linea, BMW 3 Series, Mercedes C-Class, Skoda Octavia and Laura, and Toyota Corolla, has also registered a growth of 4.5% at 2,926 units last month, vis--vis 2,799 units in February 2008. Over 75% of the passenger car market is dominated by compact cars. Hence, there has been a shift in strategy for GM India, wherein the company is focusing more on the volume rather than value segment, noted a Mumbai-based analyst. As interest rates continue to be high, there is not much demand... for bigger cars and it will not be before the middle of this year that demand bounces back to normal, said P Balendran, vice president, GM India. ... http://www.financialexpress.com/news/gm-shifts-gears-to-focus-on-smaller-cars/437205/2 http://in.biz.yahoo.com/090320/50/batcj4.html EFFORTS TO REDUCE COST OF OWNERSHIP WORKING: FORD N. Ramakrishnan The Hindu Business Line (Web & Print Edition) Chennai: Ford India believes its efforts to tackle the cost of ownership issue are paying off and that is one explanation for the growing number of Ford vehicles on the roads. Besides, the recently launched 1.4-litre Ikon diesel at an ex-showroom price of Rs 5.19 lakh has pushed sales of this entry-level sedan, which was also Ford Indias first manufactured product in the country. Mr Nigel E. Wark, Executive Director (Marketing, Sales & Service), Ford India Pvt Ltd, said the company was aware of the perception that the cost of ownership for its vehicles was high. This is not a good position to have for your brand, he told Business Line. Ford India first worked to change this perception among its employees and dealers, which was passed on to the customers. We are as cheap as anybody else, he said, adding that the company had been able to change the cost of a lot of parts. Being able to manufacture the diesel engine by itself had helped in this process. The company had done more work on localisation with its suppliers, because of which it was able to change some fundamental cost of inputs. Small car plans Cost of ownership, Mr Wark said, was not just about cost of spares. Service fixtures, time taken to carry out the service and durability of parts all had a major role to play. According to industry sources, Ford India plans to have the same 1.4-litre diesel engine in the small car that it will launch in early 2010. Mr Wark declined to provide any details about the car apart from saying that it is on track and that we have got to look at petrol and diesel for any of the products that one brings into the market, given the strong bias in favour of diesel engine cars in the Indian market. On car sales and the market, Mr Wark felt that the growth in February would not truly represent market conditions. Sales in February 2008 were influenced by the Budget, with people delaying buying vehicles, expecting sops in the Budget, while February this year was a boom month because of elections and also because there was no Budget. Finance For sales growth to sustain, issues such as availability of finance at lower rates of interest need to be settled. Discussions were on between banks and car manufacturers on this, while Ford India, like other manufacturers, was in talks with a few public sector banks for a tie-up to fund purchase of its vehicles. Mr Wark declined to name the banks the company was in talks with. He also hoped that issues relating to re-possession of vehicles in case of default in payment by customers would be settled soon for the automobile industry to revive. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/03/21/stories/2009032150650200.htm ULTRA MOTOR PLANS TO SET UP ASSEMBLY UNIT IN NCR PTI See this story in: The Hindu Business Line (Web Edition) New Delhi: UK-based electric vehicle maker Ultra Motor is mulling to set up an assembly unit in the national capital region (NCR) of India as it targets over two- fold increase in sales in the next fiscal. The company, which has got a new management team in India, plans to launch as many as six products and increase its dealership network to 300 from the existing 170, in the next fiscal. "Electric vehicles category is becoming more and more important globally and it will substantially grow in India as well. We are planning to sell 55,000 units in India in 2009-10,'' Ultra Motor Chairman and CEO, Mr Joe Santana told PTI here. The com pany expects to close the current financial year with total sales of 24,000 units, he added. "If we are able to meet the target of the next fiscal then we will be actively looking at setting up a new assembly unit by the fourth quarter of FY 2010,'' Ultra Motor India Managing Director, Mr K K Bhan said. Without giving details, he said, the company has zeroed in at a place near Gurgaon for the proposed facility. The investment for the planned facility would be a part of the Rs 150-crore India expansion plan for three years, which the company announc ed last year. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/blnus/02201863.htm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| COMMERCIAL VEHICLES Go To Top The Hindu Business Line (Web & Print Edition) Chennai: The slowdown is creating opportunity for companies and employees to do things differently, especially when it comes to cost-cutting. Ashok Leyland said on Thursday that it gained Rs 1.67 crore from its Ennore manufacturing facility as one-time savings based on a few cost-saving initiatives taken up by the company. Mr K Sridharan Balaji, General Manager (Manufacturing) Ennore Plant of the company, said in October the manufacturing unit of the company identified about 1,600 projects to save cost and about 780 of them have begun yielding results. In addition to one-time saving of Rs 1.67 crore, these projects will conserve Rs 90 lakh each year as recurring savings, including Rs 40 lakh from three projects interconnecting cooling towers, endogas chambers and gear machining process. The benefits of other projects will be realised soon, he said. The facility that was commissioned 61 years ago can manufacture 40,500 chassis, 50,000 engines, 75,900 rear axles and 72,000 front axles. Due to the slowdown, the unit worked for only 12 days a month between November and February. Even then the employees could not work fully as the demand for vehicles was low. The workforce capitalised the spare time and identified cost-saving projects. These projects will be implemented soon at other manufacturing facilities of Ashok Leyland. Beyond shop floor, this unit also worked on converting non-moving aggregates and components into saleable units and saved Rs 7 crore. Besides, it also converted about 1,300 units of piled up vehicle inventory into saleable units by carrying out some modifications. It is working on value stream mapping to determine and work with defined inventory for every component. This will help to reduce the total inventory from 16 day to 11 days. As part of its initiative the unit is planning to introduce maintenance audit system to help enhance machine availability time and eliminate breakdowns. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/03/21/stories/2009032150770200.htm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| COMPONENTS Go To Top The Financial Express Panchkula: Bosch Ltd, a leading global supplier of technology and services registered sales growth of 6% in the year 2008. Bosch Ltd, the flagship of the Bosch Group subsidiaries in India, is Indias largest auto component manufacturer and also one of the largest Indo-German company in India. The Bosch Group holds close to 70% stake in Bosch Ltd. Meanwhile, Bosch now has a new address in Panchkula. The new sales office was inaugurated here on Fridayby K Ravi, vice-president, automotive aftermarket. On results front, in 2008, the company generated net sales of Rs 45,416 million, registering a growth of 6.1% over 2007. The profit before tax (PBT) stood at Rs 8,566 million accounting for 18.9% of net sales, compared to 20% in 2007. The profit after tax (PAT) stood at Rs 6,339 million, which is 14% of the net sales compared to 14.2% for the previous year. Significant one-off financial income from investments helped in achieving profitability. Announcing the companys financial results for 2008, VK Viswanathan, managing director, Bosch Ltd, said, Our growth last year was significantly below expectation and was largely due to the sharp and sudden slowdown in the Indian economy in general and the automotive sector in particular in the fourth quarter of 2008.The stimulus packages announced by the government are expected to improve the demand in domestic market from the lows of December 2008. K Ravi, vice-president, automotive aftermarket, Bosch Ltd, said, Bosch has been the pioneer of low-price vehicle solutions in the Indian market. The market for such vehicles is expected to grow substantially in the coming years, which will generate additional business for the company. The consumer goods and building technology business of the company is expected to continue its growth trajectory. The recent policy initiatives and announcements of the government to improve the infrastructure will benefit the businesses in this sector. The companys automotive technology business achieved a growth of 4.3% in 2008. The non-automotive business sectors of the company showed satisfactory results. The packaging technology business grew by 12.7%, whereas the power tools and security systems businesses grew 27.7% and 21.4% respectively. Product and process innovation, the low price vehicle segment and the non-automotive business sectors will continue to receive high priority in 2009 and beyond, said Viswanathan. http://www.financialexpress.com/news/bosch-sales-increase-6-opens-new- | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ALLIED INDUSTRY Go To Top Aravindan The Hindu Business Line Kottayam: Apart from demand-supply relations, factors such as crude oil prices, futures trading, and weather changes control the rubber market. Now, one more threat most likely to affect the domestic market is looming large the large-scale import of tyre into the country, Mr Sajen Peter, Chairman, Rubber Board, told Business Line. Against the import of 80,000 bus, truck tyres in 2002-03, the figures have now gone up to 13.28 lakh in 2007-08 and the import of tyres for passenger cars increased to 16.27 lakh from 1.94 lakh. This is equivalent to the import of 32,700 tonnes of natural rubber rubber into the country. During the current fiscal, it is likely to reach alarming proportions. The truck tyres are mostly imported from China and car tyres from China and South Korea. In India, there are about 43 tyre companies and their sale proceeds come to Rs 20,000 crore. Their annual production is around 811 lakh tyres. During 2007-08, the country exported tyres worth Rs 3,000 crore. The lions share of natural rubber is consumed by the automobile sector, especially tyre manufacturers. Therefore, any move in this sector would directly affect the rubber market in the country. Duty impact One of the major reasons for the increase in tyre import is the fall of import duty from 45 per cent 10 years ago to 10 per cent in 2007-08. Moreover, for China and South Korea who have signed the Asia-Pacific trade agreement, this will further decrease to 8.6 per cent. But in Malaysia and Vietnam, import duty is 40 per cent and in Thailand and Indonesia it is 15 per cent. As a result of the global economic recession, the export from China to the US is dull and therefore, there is every possibility that China would try to export the tyre stock with them to India at a low price. This is being viewed seriously by the Rubber Board. The market development committee which met in 2008 discussed the problem and recommended certain solutions. The Board meeting convened in January 2009 also reviewed this important issue. To control imports, the Board has recommended various measures to the government which included imposing anti-dumping and safeguard duty, inclusion of truck and bus radial tyres in the controlled list, enhancing customs duty, introducing quality control checking and inclusion of tyres in the negative list for tariff concession. The rubber plantation and manufacturing industry are two sides of the same coin. Being an industrial crop, it is natural that problems arise but they can be overcome with intelligent and scientific planning, Mr Peter said. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/03/21/stories/2009032150211600.htm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FINANCE & INSURANCE Go To Top Nandini Sen Gupta The Economic Times New Delhi: Private banks such as HDFC, ICICI and Kotak Mahindra have decided against entering into a rate war with PSU banks over the financing of Nano for now, as they fear aggressive interest rates could lead to high defaults. Though they are still in discussions with Tata Motors, they do not want to offer loans at less than normal rates for Nano customers. ICICI Bank plans to look at profile-driven financing. We will not service high-risk customers, said a senior ICICI executive. For our normal low risk profile car buyers, we will offer loans at our usual rates 14-15%. Like HDFC, ICICI too is talking to Tata Motors on financing the booking amount, but says the 10.5% demand may not be workable. Copyright 2009, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Industry/Auto/Automobiles/ MAHINDRA, TATA MOTORS IN VEHICLE FINANCE PACT WITH BOB Agencies See this story in: The Financial Express, The Hindu Customers can avail loan of up to 85 per cent on the road price of the vehicle for a tenure between five and seven years at 10.5 per cent per annum. http://www.financialexpress.com/news/mahindra-tata-motors-in-vehicle-finance- http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/21/stories/2009032156361400.htm The Hindu Business Line See similar story in: The Hindu Bangalore: Canara Bank has entered into a tie-up with Hyundai Motor India Ltd to finance the passenger vehicles produced by the company. The bank will extend the finance facility through its branches across the country to the buyers of the cars through the 251 Hyundai dealers. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/03/21/stories/2009032150880600.htm http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/21/stories/2009032156221400.htm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LUBRICANTS & ALTERNATIVE FUELS Go To Top Reuters See this story in: The Times of India Perth: Oil fell from a near 4-month high to around $51 on Friday, paring the previous session's 7% gain, on doubts over the effectiveness of the US Federal Reserve's $1 trillion package to revive the economy
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| INTERNATIONAL NEWS Go To Top Swaraj Baggonkar & Surajeet Das Gupta Business Standard
So far, Honda and Toyota have dominated this small market of 5,500 cars with a combined 72 per cent share. From this year, theyll face tough competition from Europe and renewed aggression from the Koreans. The new competitors on the block are the new version of SkodaAutos Superb, Volkswagens Passat, and Hyundais Sonata Transform. Significantly, all of them are positioning themselves as value-for-money challengers in this market (which saw flat sales growth last year), where prices range from Rs 17 lakh to Rs 24 lakh. The new launches from Europe and Korea are already being felt. Skodas Superb, for instance, has increased its share from just 9.8 per cent last year to 17 per cent in the first two months of this year. In the same period, Honda has seen its market share fall from 62 per cent to 52 per cent. A fresh salvo was fired this month by SkodaAuto. It has just launched a new version of the petrol Superb with a 1.79 litre engine, priced at Rs 18.4 lakh. Thats nearly Rs 2 lakh less than the earlier model withdrawn this year, which had a heavier, 2.8 litre, engine. Price-wise, this new one is clearly positioned against the Honda Accord, currently the largest-selling in this market. The Accord is priced between Rs 17 lakh and Rs 18 lakh (but has a 2.4 litre engine). Dealers say the new Superb offers 9-10 km per litre (kmpl), against 7-8 km for the Accord, has a higher top speed of 220 km an hour (200 kmph for the Accord), though it has lower BHP of 160 (to Accords 180). And it has swanky interiors in wood, chrome and leather, plus an electric sunroof and ample luggage space. Skoda has an aggressive sales target for the calendar year: it hopes to double Superb sales to 1,000, against the 520 it sold last year. "The Superb is aggressively priced and with the features, it will make a dent in the Accord market," said a competing auto company that operates in the premium segment. Skoda is also launching a new diesel version of the Superb in one or two months. Neither Honda nor Toyota has competing products. With a 2-litre common rail TDI engine, the new diesel is expected to be at least Rs 1-1.5 lakh cheaper than the heavier and less-refined diesel Superb sold earlier (at Rs 23 lakh ), now withdrawn. And, it will deliver 15-16 kmpl against the 10-11 kmpl in the outgoing Superb. We launched the petrol model first because we wanted to capture the petrol market, said Thomas Kuehl, member of the board, sales and marketing, SkodaAuto India. The TDI has helped us build sales in India (in other models) and we will have it in the new Superb soon. Volkswagens Passat is also being positioned as a value-for-money car, combining power and fuel efficiency it used to be a uniquely Japanese strategy. In February, the company replaced the Passat fired by a diesel TDI engine with the more contemporary 2-litre common rail engine, but kept the price unchanged at Rs 25 lakh. The car offers 11-12 kmpl in city conditions and as much as 15 kmpl on highways. None of the petrol Japanese cars can match this. It also has a top speed of 216 kmph. The Passat will sell more as we increase the number of dealers, from 14 to 40 by the end of the year, said Kurt Rippholz, head-Volkswagen India Brand Communications. Rippholz concedes the car, assembled in India, may be more expensive, but says it has better resale value than its competitors. It also provides savings in fuel efficiency, so the overall savings for an owner are higher, he added. He is clear that the company will not look at manufacturing the car in India to reduce prices. But it is Koreas Hyundai that is positioning itself most aggressively as the price warrior, through the new Sonata Transform launched this January. The diesel option, with a 2.0 litre engine, is available at under Rs 17 lakh. Without changing the fuel economy, the company has increased the power in the new model by around 6 per cent, pricing it by an extra Rs 1 lakh-plus. The petrol version of the Sonata Transform has seen a similar transformation. With the competitive pricing of the Sonata Transform, we expect to sell at least 2,000 units by the end of the year, said Ashok Jha, president, Hyundai Motor India. Honda, which has seen its market share dip over recent months to these new challengers, says it isnt deterred. It hopes to sell 200 to 250 units of the Accord per month; it sold about 282 cars every month last year. And, from this Monday, the company raised the Accords price by a hefty Rs 100,000, saying the cost of imported components, 75 per cent of the cars cost, have increased. We agree that we lack a diesel option but Honda enjoys a strong brand name in India that the competitors dont have, says Jnaneswar Sen, vice president - marketing, Honda Siel Cars India Ltd (HSCI). Instead, it has just launched the new Accord (V6) with a 3.5 litre petrol engine, priced at Rs 25 lakh nearly the same as the Passat, and positioned as its petrol alternative. This car is positioned for customers who were looking for more power from the Honda stable. It is the most powerful Accord model ever, said Masahiro Takedagawa, president of Honda Siel. Unlike the Passat, the car offers only 6 kmpl, according to dealers, but provides over 275 BHP. This car will have an intelligent variable cylinder management system that switches between six four and three cylinders, depending on driving conditions. Apart from six airbags, the car will also have paddle shift, just like F1 cars. Meanwhile, Toyota is facing different challenges Sales for its Camry have dropped between April 2008 and February 2009 to 473 units against 906 units in the same period the year before. Toyota imports the Camry, attracting 110 per cent import duty, which effectively doubles the price. The Camry is priced at Rs 21-22 lakh ex-showroom, Mumbai. Demand has not dried up, but has gone down significantly. One of the main challenges the Camry faces is the high import duty, since it continues to be a fully imported model, conceded Sandeep Singh, deputy managing director (sales and marketing), Toyota Kirloskar Motors. All the same, the company has no plans to assemble the premium car in India and has decided not to focus on this segment for now. RENAULT TO CREATE JOBS IN FRANCE AP See this story in: Mint, The Times of India Paris: Renault SA said Friday it plans to create 400 jobs in France by moving excess production of its Clio Campus model from Slovenia to the French site of Flins northwest of Paris. Nathalie Bourotte said the move will not entail any job losses at Renaults Slovenian plant of Novo mesto, which makes the Twingo and Clio models and is at full capacity after a French government stimulus measure that has proven popular boosted demand for small models made there. As a result of Fridays announcement, Renault expects to produce around 8,000 Clio Campus vehicles in Flins from June to October to meet this extra demand. The French site mostly produces the newer Clio III model. Industry minister Luc Chatel welcomed the move in a radio interview this morning, calling it a repatriation of the production. Bourotte said the decision was taken for business reasons to meet increased demand, allowing the Slovenian plant to increase production of the Twingo while the French plant makes more Clio Campus. Novo Mesto has no more available capacity, which is why we took the decision, she said. http://www.livemint.com/2009/03/20171141/Renault-to-create-jobs-in-Fran.html See this story in: The Hindu Business Line
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| ECONOMY & FINANCE Go To Top The Hindu Business Line Mumbai: The countrys foreign exchange reserves increased by $1.432 billion to $248.724 billion, according to the Reserve Bank of Indias weekly statistical supplement. For the week ended March 6, reserves fell by $1.98 billion to $247.292 billion. Foreign currency assets increased by $1.430 billion to $238.157 billion. Foreign currency assets expressed in dollar terms include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US currencies. The increase in the reserves was on account of the euro gaining strength against the dollar in the overseas markets, said a dealer with a private bank. Gold reserves and SDRs remained unchanged at $9.74 billion and $1 million respectively. The reserve position in the IMF increased by $2 million to $820 million. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/03/21/stories/2009032150860600.htm SENSEX ENDS BELOW 9,000 IN VOLATILE TRADE PTI See this story in: The Hindu Business Line Mumbai: The Bombay Stock Exchange 30-share Sensex closed below the 9,000 level on Friday even as the market bounced back from its intra-day lows on expectations of further relaxation in monetary policy by the Reserve Bank. The BSE barometer ended the day at 8,966.68, a net fall of 35.07 points or 0.39 per cent from its previous close. The market tested a low of 8,867.13 at the mid-session due to mixed trends in global markets. The National Stock Exchange's 50-share Nifty, however, was flat at 2,807.05 from its last close of 2,807.15. Brokers said the market was fairly volatile during the day amid optimism that the Reserve Bank of India may further ease monetary policy after inflation dropped to a low of 0.44 per cent in the first week of March. The FIIs' positive activity in the current week also sparked buying interest in select stocks. The foreign institutional investors pumped in nearly $200 million in equity on March 17 and 18. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/blnus/05201901.htm
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