Honda is going to reduce its production capacity in Swindon
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- Honda has two plants in Europe, one in England (Swindon), which produces the Civic, the CRV and the Jazz, and one in Turkey (Gebze) that produces the Civic. The two plants have a production capacity of 310 000 units (250 000 for Swindon and 60 000 for Gebze).
- Honda sales in Europe fell gradually from 335 000 in 2007 to 140 000 in 2013 with the production falling from 261 000 in 2007 to 154 000 in 2013. These Honda plants only supply the European market and have therefore become oversized.
- This is why the group isn't anticipating a significant improvement in the sales volume in Europe by 2016, the Japanese manufacturer has decided to reduce by one third its production capacity at its Swindon plant. It will therefore be reduced from 250 000 units to 170 000 units this year. The plant in Gebze will retain its capacity of 60 000 units per year, while it produces only 15 000 a year Civic aren't in the top 10 anymore.
- The obvious fall in sales of Honda in Europe of over 50% in a few years clearly shows that the Honda range is no more in tune with the customer demand. To boost sales, it probably lacks a mini-SUV in its range, a competitor for the Nissan Juke as this segment is booming in Europe. Honda introduced the new Vezel last year, but its manufacturing is still pending.
Read more... Honda is going to reduce its production capacity in Swindon
Features of the European top 10 PC and LCV market in 2013
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Read more... Features of the European top 10 PC and LCV market in 2013
The ASEAN countries will reach a market of 5 million vehicles in 2025
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- Leading automobile markets in the ASEAN region such as Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam are expected to rise from 3.5 million vehicles (PCs + LCVs) in 2013 to 5 000 000 units in 2025, representing an increase of 43% in 12 years (3% per year over 12 years).
- Car registration reminder for 2013:
- Thailand: 1.33 million units (740 000 PC + 590 000 LCV)
- Indonesia: 1.22 million units (830 000 PC + 390 000 LCV)
- Malaysia: 656 000 units (570 000 PC + 86 000 LCV)
- Philippines: 212 000 units (52 000 PC + 160 000 LCV)
- Vietnam: 97 000 units (60 000 PC + 37 000 LCV)
- Japanese carmakers, that have dominated this area for many years with a market share of 80% could on one hand expect to earn up to 1.5 million additional sales by 2025, but on the other hand they could see their penetration cropped over the next few years with the arrival of competing manufacturers such as Volkswagen, Hyundai, Kia or Chinese brands.
Read more... The ASEAN countries will reach a market of 5 million vehicles in 2025
Renault will launch the successor to the Laguna in 2015
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Read more... Renault will launch the successor to the Laguna in 2015
Hyundai is going to build a fourth factory in China
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- The Korean carmaker Hyundai will set up a fourth assembly plant in China. The new site (located in Chongqing, in the centre of the country) will have a production capacity of 300 000 units per year.
- Hyundai today manufactures 1.05 million vehicles annually in China in partnership with the Chinese carmaker BAIC (Beijing) in three different plants located in the surroundings of Beijing (two in Shunyi and one in Yancheng).
- The Korean carmaker sold 1.03 million vehicles on the Chinese market last year (of which 966 000 units where made in China) and has set a target for 2014 of 1.08 million units (of which 1 million units made in China ). But its current production capacity is limited to 1 million vehicles a year.
- The construction of this fourth plant will therefore enable Hyundai to manufacture up to 1.3 million vehicles per year starting from 2015-2016. At that time, its forecast ranged from 1.13 million units to 1.18 million units per year.
- This means that if the growth rate of sales of Hyundai models in China is maintained, it will need a new factory around 2018. The last plant built by the Korean brand in China dates back to 2012. This plant has a capacity of 300 000 units per year.
- The most made Hyundai models in China in 2013 were the Elantra (413 513 units), Verna (202 403 units), iX35 (157 300 units) and Sonata (105 500 units).
Read more... Hyundai is going to build a fourth factory in China