Steel Guru : Japanese carmakers prefer Thailand to India as small car hub - 167034 - 2010-09-26
Steel Guru : Japanese carmakers prefer Thailand to India as small car hub - 167034 - 2010-09-26
Japanese automakers are veering around to the idea of using Thailand as a global hub for their compact cars in the Asia-Pacific region and parts of Europe. In contrast, India's domestic market will be top priority though exports could be conceived later.
Importing fully built up cars back to Japan from Thailand is also emerging a strong possibility. The Thai eco car plan is a key growth driver of this strategy where the likes of Nissan, Honda, Toyota, Suzuki and Mitsubishi have planned similar models for India. For instance, the Nissan March is the Micra for India while Honda's compact car will debut in both countries by end-2011.
Where Thailand outscores India as an attractive location is the fact that it is part of the ASEAN Free Trade Area, which eliminates tariff barriers between 10 countries in the region. Japanese carmakers have constantly maintained that similar trade pacts would help Indian ancillary suppliers become part of their global sourcing plans.
What is interesting about the Thai eco program is the opportunity of exporting cars back to Japan. Nissan, which launched the March early this year, is a case in point.
Mr Ammar Master senior marketing analyst of JD Power and Associates said that “In a bold move, the company relocated production of its March from Japan to Thailand. Thai shipments to Japan began in end June and we expect volumes to reach 40,000 units this year and 60,000 units in 2011.”
Honda is expected to follow a similar business plan where its small car will be part of the Thai eco project and exported from there to Europe and Asia (and even back to Japan). For India, the company will focus on catering to the large domestic market.
Toyota has the Etios planned for an India debut and reports have been doing the rounds that it will find its way into Thailand's eco car plan too. Suzuki, likewise, is tipped to launch the Swift in Thailand while Mitsubishi is working on an eco car that could also enter India as part of an alliance with PSA Peugeot Citroen.
Has India lost out to Thailand as a hub for compact cars? Not everyone agrees with this view, citing the cases of Ford, General Motors and even Nissan, which exports the Micra to nearly 100 countries in Europe. Sources said that “India offers the best mix of costs and quality even while Thailand has the advantage of free trade pacts and Japanese patronage.”
Japanese automakers are veering around to the idea of using Thailand as a global hub for their compact cars in the Asia-Pacific region and parts of Europe. In contrast, India's domestic market will be top priority though exports could be conceived later.
Importing fully built up cars back to Japan from Thailand is also emerging a strong possibility. The Thai eco car plan is a key growth driver of this strategy where the likes of Nissan, Honda, Toyota, Suzuki and Mitsubishi have planned similar models for India. For instance, the Nissan March is the Micra for India while Honda's compact car will debut in both countries by end-2011.
Where Thailand outscores India as an attractive location is the fact that it is part of the ASEAN Free Trade Area, which eliminates tariff barriers between 10 countries in the region. Japanese carmakers have constantly maintained that similar trade pacts would help Indian ancillary suppliers become part of their global sourcing plans.
What is interesting about the Thai eco program is the opportunity of exporting cars back to Japan. Nissan, which launched the March early this year, is a case in point.
Mr Ammar Master senior marketing analyst of JD Power and Associates said that “In a bold move, the company relocated production of its March from Japan to Thailand. Thai shipments to Japan began in end June and we expect volumes to reach 40,000 units this year and 60,000 units in 2011.”
Honda is expected to follow a similar business plan where its small car will be part of the Thai eco project and exported from there to Europe and Asia (and even back to Japan). For India, the company will focus on catering to the large domestic market.
Toyota has the Etios planned for an India debut and reports have been doing the rounds that it will find its way into Thailand's eco car plan too. Suzuki, likewise, is tipped to launch the Swift in Thailand while Mitsubishi is working on an eco car that could also enter India as part of an alliance with PSA Peugeot Citroen.
Has India lost out to Thailand as a hub for compact cars? Not everyone agrees with this view, citing the cases of Ford, General Motors and even Nissan, which exports the Micra to nearly 100 countries in Europe. Sources said that “India offers the best mix of costs and quality even while Thailand has the advantage of free trade pacts and Japanese patronage.”
