India�s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki today launched its fifth World Strategic Model A-Star in India today. With this new model the company is eying an export market of around 1.5 lakh to two lakh cars annually by fiscal 2009-10.
Last year the company exported around 53,000 cars to 40 countries.
In order to handle the increased export traffic new infrastructure is being put in place.
�The car terminal at Mundra Port, which we are setting up in joint venture with the Adani Group, will be ready by mid-December. New double-decker railway wagons have been developed for transporting cars from the factory,� the Chairman of the company, Mr R.C. Bhargava said.
The company has launched the new model in three variants with an ex-showroom price in the Capital in the range of Rs 3,46,775 to Rs 4,11,775.
With the global economy in recession the company sees that there is a possibility of people�s choice shifting towards small cars.
�There could be a shift for people going in for small cars and that would increase the export share of models like A-star and Swift,� Mr Bhargava said.
The new model is launched on a new platform with a light weight 998 cc K10B petrol engine with a mileage of 19.59 km per litre and would roll out from the company�s Manesar plant.
PRODUCTION RE-ADJUSTMENT
Poor market demand has forced the company to produce below target in order to avoid inventory piling up.
The Gurgaon facility that has a capacity of producing seven lakh vehicles annually is currently not making full capacity utilisation.
�There has been a re-adjustment of production in our Gurgaon plant. For instance, instead of three shifts, now we are having only two-and-a-half shift productions,� the company�s Executive Officer (Marketing and Sales), Mr Mayank Pareek, said after the launch.
The current market growth is around four per cent against a projected growth of around 10 per cent, he said.
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