LAHORE: The Honda Atlas Cars Pakistan launched the country’s first Euro-3 compliant car Honda City-2006 at a ceremony held on Saturday.

Speaking on the occasion, Motohide Sudo, the Honda Motors Co Japan director, said that the automobile industry was rapidly evolving in Pakistan, which was an important member of the Asia-Oceania region. He assured that the company would continue to contribute to the economy of Pakistan.

Yusuf H Shirazi, the chairman of the company, said that the government had reduced incentives for localisation from 100 percent to as low as 50 to 65 percent. Furthermore, the government has also relaxed rules pertaining to the import of used cars through several schemes. He said that at a time when the automobile industry had started gaining confidence to make major investments, any shift in policies might have a dampening effect on the investment climate. He said that if the industry continued developing, it would not only be a foreign exchange saver but also a foreign exchange earner, which would turn Pakistan into a hub of investment, production and export.

The new Honda City offers refined interior and exterior and it would be available with its unique 1.3L cc I-DSI engine in both manual and automatic transmission and Vario options. The company has also launched the new City with 1.5L VTEC engine and Steermatic function for the first time in the country. pr