Here is a list of all the top auto news breaks of the week.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced companies to take tough calls on operations. This included cutting down fund infusion, closure of subsidiaries and putting operations on sale. Harley-Davidson (HD), the iconic leisure bike making company, is speculated to be on its way out of India on the lines of General Motors and Fiat. But what triggered this? We take a look at the finer details of the issue but not before bringing to you the top auto news breaks of the week.
Hero exploring options in e-three wheelers
Hero MotoCorp is exploring options in the electric three-wheeler space in an attempt to diversify operations and reduce its dependence on the budget bike segment, comprising the Splendor and Passion.
India’s largest two-wheeler maker, which had a retail market share of 41 percent as of July, said the three-wheeler segment is one of the areas it is evaluating among emerging mobility opportunities.
Maruti Suzuki is buying land parcels
In the last four years, Maruti Suzuki amassed 118 land parcels in India, costing over Rs 1,500 crore, to be given to dealer partners for showrooms and service outlets.
This is the biggest investment by any carmaker to secure dealership support for the future. Maruti Suzuki is preparing to defend its iron grip over the domestic car market.
Kia to target SUVs, vans for India
Korea-based Kia Motors Corporation is looking to focus only on select segments such as SUVs and vans to build its product portfolio in India where 50 percent of the car market is controlled by only one company, Maruti Suzuki.
A top Kia official said that the company would rather be a niche player in India rather than stretch itself thin. Each segment represents a different target customer with specific needs and expectations, he said.
Auto component industry revenue down
The turnover of the automotive component industry during FY20 declined 11.7 percent to Rs 3.49 lakh crore ($49.2 billion) from the previous year, the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA) said on August 19.
ACMA president Deepak Jain said that there will be about 25-40 percent degrowth this year and there will be a 30-35 percent degrowth in two years
Kia claims to garner 6,523 bookings for Sonet in one day
Kia Motors India on August 21 said it has received 6,523 bookings on the first day for its upcoming compact SUV Sonet.
The upcoming model has generated an overwhelming response, with 6,523 bookings on the very first day, Kia Motors India said in a statement.
Harley Davidson may exit Indian market
Having completed 25,000 sales in India in 10 years, on February 4, Sajeev Rajasekharan, managing director, Harley-Davidson India, was quoted in a release from the cruiser maker, “We are thrilled about our journey over the last 10 years and are sure that the next decade will see more community building, innovations and launches from the H-D stable”.
But the time it took Harley-Davidson India to achieve 25,000 units sales in its home market, the US, clocks more than that in a quarter as of 2019 when the country saw sales of 126,000 Harley-Davidson bikes.
This is the reason why the iconic bike maker wants to concentrate on its home market rather than routing resources to unyielding emerging markets like India. Harley-Davidson announced its intention of exiting unspecified markets outside of the US to contain the drain on its financials.
Darrell Thomas, Vice President, Treasurer and Interim Chief Financial Officer, Harley-Davidson said, “We’re focusing on about 50 primary markets that generate the vast majority of our retail sales and shipments. We are still evaluating markets we may choose to exit. Such markets generate a relatively modest amount of our sales and a relatively modest amount of our profits.”
Thomas was talking to analysts after announcing the June quarter results in July. Nearly 75 percent of Harley’s worldwide sales is controlled by the US and Europe with the US commanding 56 percent of the share.
Under the ‘Rewire’ programme that was kick-started a couple of months ago, the Milwaukee-based bike maker intends to have a more streamlined product portfolio and a leaner cost structure.
Jochen Zeitz, Chairman, President and CEO, Harley-Davidson said, “Major changes include concentrating efforts on the highest priority markets, primarily North America, with the US and Canada, Europe and parts of Asia Pacific, and structuring in a way that shifts resources and marketing into the regions for maximum impact in line with our future strategy."
About 8 years ago Harley-Davidson India outlined medium-term plans for the country which included clocking sales of 10,000 units a month by 2016. This came after the company witnessed encouraging demand through the setting up of an assembly plant in Haryana.
A couple of years ago Harley tied up with a Chinese company Qianjiang to build a new motorcycle having a sub 350cc engine. The launch was supposed to take place this year but there has been no news of the project in recent months.
The baby Harley was to address the lower mid-capacity buyers presently catered to by the Royal Enfield range.
Harley competes against Triumph, Indian, Benelli, Kawasaki, Ducati, Aprilia and premium range of Yamaha, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Honda. Most of these brands do not share sales data with the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers.