KARACHI, Jan 4 Asia Pulse - Pak Suzuki has doubled the production of vehicles in less than two years, and has invested more than Rs2 billion (US$33.6 million) to further increase production, the company’s managing director Kenichi Ayukawa said.
He was briefing vice-chairman of the Planning Commission of Pakistan and chairman of the Engineering Development Board (EDB) Akram Sheikh, and chief co-ordinator of the Engineering Development Board Javed Akhtar Paracha during their visit to the plant and head office of Pak Suzuki Motor Company, Karachi.

According to a press release the managing director briefed Akram Sheikh that the company has already installed a state-of-the-art plastic shop that will cope with increasing demand of plastic components.

He said the new press shop would be commissioned by March 2005 that will cater to the requirement of body parts of all models. The expansion of paint shop will be functional in February 2005. After these enhancements the capacity will increase from current 50,000 units per annum to 80,000 units per annum.

Ayukawa explained that the company plans to inject CBUs in first quarter of 2005 to plug the demand gap, followed by the local manufacturing of these models from the year 2006 onwards.

LAHORE: A Nigeria-based joint venture of German and Chinese auto giants, National Motors intends to invest $25 million in Pakistan to establish an assembling plant for small trucks and large-sized prime movers.

“The production of this joint venture company is expected to start within a year, which will cater to the domestic as well as emerging regional markets,” said Inaam ul Haq, a local representative of the company while speaking to newsmen on Thursday.

He said that the company is currently manufacturing prime movers and small trucks in Nigeria under the brand name of National Trucks with the technical support of Styer (Germany) and its Chinese partners.

The company is owned by an expatriate Pakistani, Tariq Ashraf, who settled down in Nigeria about two decades ago and currently wanted to invest back home. National Motors is the largest truck manufacturers of Western Africa, Inaam said and added that their company has taken this decision following Pakistan government’s intention of conditionally allowing Indian goods pass through Pakistani territory.

After starting from the prime mover, the company would move to small trucks of 2.5 to five tonnes assembling which would cater to the domestic market, he said and added that they have no intention of entering the booming car-assembling sector of Pakistan.

He said that a delegation of National Motors Nigeria has already landed in China to discuss the possibilities of Chinese support for this project. After making necessary arrangements, the delegation is expected to land in Pakistan next week, he added.

The company has initially finalised Hub (Balochistan) as a possible place for its assembling plant, however, Gadoon Amazai and Hattar (NWFP) may be the possible alternatives depending upon the facilities being offered by respective provincial governments, he added. He said that the company is also considering shifting its major vendor base to Pakistan, which would help domestic engineering industry to flourish on a par with international standards.

KARACHI: Pak Suzuki Motor Company (PSMC) has doubled the production of its vehicles in a period of two years due to the ever-increasing demand of cars in the country.

This was stated by the Managing Director, PSMC, Kenichi Ayukawa while talking to newsmen at the Geo Motor Show here at Karachi Expo Centre on Saturday.

Ayukawa said that his company would be producing 65,000 units by the end of the year 2004 as compared to 30,000 units in 2002. He said that with the completion of its expansion plan worth Rs2 billion, the company would further increase its production to the tune of 30 per cent over 2004.

He disclosed that PSMC would soon be introducing two new models - Suzuki Liana and Grand Vitara XL-7 - in the local market.

He said that Pak Suzuki has the lowest waiting period that ranges from 2-4 months depending on the model and version. He, however, said that his company was trying to maintain minimum waiting period through restricted booking.

He said that as the company is going to increase production by 30 per cent from next year, the premium problem would be overcome to a large extent and people may take a sigh of relief.

ISLAMABAD: Liaquat Ali Jatoi, the federal minister for industries and production, Tuesday has invited Volvo Company to assemble cars and buses in Pakistan to get market share in the auto sector.

He said this while addressing launching ceremony of world’s renowned Volvo FM Truck of VPL Limited, a Swedish company here.

The minister inaugurated the FM truck on behalf of the Prime Minister Chaudhry Shujat Hussain due to his other important engagements. He said there is huge demand of cars and due to this the local car assemblers are not timely delivering the vehicles to the customers.

He said that the government would provide all assistance to the Volvo Company for assembling cars and buses in Pakistan and also stressed the need for transfer of technology.

In the past, Volvo implemented a comprehensive urban transport project in the city of Lahore, funded by Swedish government. Over the years, Volvo has also played an important role in the development of the road network in Pakistan, as Volvo dump trucks have been extensively used by both Pakistani and foreign companies working in this sector.

The Volvo FM truck will bring new technology standards and quality product at affordable price. It will be an important breakthrough in the construction industry and in the automobile sector.

It will play a very important role in the development of engineering sector of Pakistan by promoting and encouraging vendor industry in the private sector. Volvo FM truck will be a trendsetter in the production of commercial vehicles involving high level of technology and international standards, he maintained.

Mr Jatoi said greatest potential of Pakistan, after the textile sector, lies in the engineering sector and hoped that the introduction of FM truck launched by VPL Limited will help Pakistan’s transport sector to develop and achieve international standards, and inspire others to invest in this sector.

Kanooz Mohyuddin, managing director of VPL Limited, in his welcome address, asked the government to improve oil efficiency and make legislation for good vehicles on the road. He said the company would invest more in this sector.

Thomas Thurison, marketing manager of Volvo Swedish-Pakistan Company, said Volvo is a large producer of truck and buses in the world and have 130 markets. He asked the government to implement the EURO-3 standards in Pakistan.

Deputy chief of mission of Swedish embaasy in Pakistan also addressed on the occasion and said that the commercial relations between the two countries are expanding and Swedish investors are interested to invest in Pakistan. He said that Volvo has played a role in the road network in Pakistan and also helped in the environmental areas.

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The Automobile Industry in Emerging Growth Markets annual study is a forecast and report for over 65 non-OECD* countries, 2004-2009. This study is conducted for automobile and parts manufacturers from Europe, Asia and the USA and provides comprehensive, reliable forecasts for those countries which are expected to show a rapid growth.

• An extensive team of analysts assessing the environment for business and the automotive industry country-by-country and an examination of their findings by senior staff.
• Updating and revising of statistics in past studies to allow for exports and imports, assembly from kits and production, scope of smuggling in both directions, and level of passenger cars being used as commercial vehicles and the reverse.
• Extensive research to relate the forecast to:
  
  1. Political trends and policies
  2. Social attitudes and conditions
  3. Economic outlook and purchasing power in the local currency
  4. Market constraints and regulations affecting vehicles
  5. Present and possible future obstacles to importing parts, components, kits, and finished vehicles such as duties, quotas, surcharges, etc.
• Quantitative experimentation to relate such independent variables as real disposable income, interest rates, ages of vehicles in operation, installment debt, consumer price escalation, and others to sales of personal and commercial units. A separate methodology was established for each major country, and a collective methodology was created for such minor markets as most African countries.

AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY [automobile industry] the business of producing and selling self-powered vehicles, including passenger cars, trucks, farm equipment, and other commercial vehicles. By allowing consumers to commute long distances for work, shopping, and entertainment, the auto industry has encouraged the development of an extensive road system, made possible the growth of suburbs and shopping centers around major cities, and played a key role in the growth of ancillary industries, such as the oil and travel businesses. The auto industry has become one of the largest purchasers of many key industrial products, such as steel. The large number of people the industry employs has made it a key determinant of economic growth.

Industry History

Although ancient Chinese writers described steam-powered vehicles, and both steam- and electric-powered cars competed with gas-powered vehicles in the late 19th cent. Frenchman Jean Joseph Étienne developed the first practical internal-combustion engine (1860), and later in the decade several inventors, most notably Karl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler, produced gas-powered vehicles that ultimately dominated the industry because they were lighter and less expensive to build. French companies set the design of the modern auto by placing the engine over the front axle in the 1890s and U.S. manufacturers made important advances in the mass production of the auto by introducing cars with interchangeable machine-produced parts (one such car was created by Ransom E. Olds in 1901).

In 1914 Henry Ford began to mass produce cars using assembly lines. In addition, his practice of providing loans to consumers to buy cars (1915) made the model-T affordable to the middle class. In the 1920s, General Motors further changed the industry by emphasizing car design. The company introduced new models each year, marketed different lines of cars to different income brackets (the Cadillac for the rich; the Chevrolet for the masses), and created a modern decentralized system of management. U.S. auto sales grew from 4,100 in 1900 to 895,900 in 1915, to 3.7 million in 1925. Sales dropped to only 1.1 million in 1932 and during World War II, the auto factories were converted to wartime production.

The Modern Industry

After 1945, sales once again took off, reaching 6.7 million in 1950 and 9.3 million in 1965. The U.S. auto industry dominated the global market with 83% of all sales, but as Europe and Japan rebuilt their economies, their auto industries grew and the U.S. share dropped to about 25%. Following the OPEC oil embargo in 1973, smaller, fuel-efficient imports increased their share of the U.S. market to 26% by 1980. In the early 1980s, U.S. auto makers cut costs with massive layoffs. Throughout the 1990s, imports—particularly from Japan—took an increasing share of the U.S. market.

Beginning in the early 1980s, Japanese and, later, German companies set up factories in the United States; by 1999, these were capable of producing about 3 million vehicles per year. As a result, the three big U.S. auto makers now produce less than two thirds of the cars sold in America. In the early 1990s, over $140 billion worth of motor vehicles and parts were produced in the United States by companies employing more than 210,000 workers. Complaints about auto pollution, traffic congestion, and auto safety led to the passage of government regulations beginning in the 1970s, forcing auto manufacturers to improve fuel efficiency and safety. Auto companies are now experimenting with cars powered by such alternative energy sources as natural gas, electricity, and solar power.

KARACHI: Japanese dealers and the authorities are planning to hire special vessels to meet the rising demand for cars from Pakistani dealers, industry sources said.Japanese car dealers have been receiving huge orders from Pakistan after the federal government announced incentives for local car dealers under the gift and luggage schemes.Japanese car dealers are finding it hard to arrange shipments for the transportation of used vehicles to Pakistan, but the industry source said the import of vehicles would rise by August and September this year. The Japanese automobile industry is considered to be the largest automotive market in central Asia. Car dealers are booking small used vehicles in Japan as prices are much lower than in other parts of the world.During the month of July, dealers imported around 900 used cars, while car companies imported only 45 new brand units. The import of used cars was between 200 and 250 units in July 2004.All Pakistan Motor Dealers Association (APMDA) Chairman H M Shahzad said: “The association has assured the federal government that it will import 30,000 to 35,000 used cars in the current fiscal year. This is the first time that dealers are thinking about importing small cars only,” he added.In the previous fiscal year, local dealers imported around 13,700 used vehicles but most of the vehicles had engines over 1300cc.