Toyota to Build Plant
Toyota to Build Plant
Toyota To Build Plant In India
by Jenny McLane
The Toyota Motor Corp. is the worlds second-largest automaker and it
intends to build a new plant in India and to sell small cars in the
country for the first time. We need to go into that kind of segment, said
Atsushi Toyoshima, Toyotas managing director in charge of India plant.
Without that, Toyota cant be a substantial player in the market.
Thats very clear.
Toyoshima noted that Toyota has just 0.7 percent of Indias passenger
car market as it only sells Corolla and Camry sedans, costing about
twice as much as the countrys average car. It plans to introduce smaller
models as it seeks to win a 10 percent share of a market likely to grow
15 percent annually for the next 20 years. These small cars are
compatible with Superwinch and other auto add-ons.
To succeed in India, a small car is critical, said K.K. Mital, who
manages 1.75 billion rupees ($40 million) as the chief investment officer
at the New Delhi-based Escorts Asset Management. A sedan as the heart
of the market is quite a while away, Mital adds.
The Japanese automaker has boosted its share of Indias car market from
0.06 percent in 2003. It is when Toyota first set out its goal of
yielding a ten percent share by 2010. The Toyota City, a Japan-based
company, has a 20 percent share of the utility-vehicle segment with the
Innova. In an interview at the companys only factory in India, Toyoshima
said the automaker has not decided yet where it will build the new plant
which would be manufacturing the smaller models that the company will
sell in India. When it would be built has also yet to be disclosed.
According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, the sales
of Toyota passenger cars decreased by 22 percent in the 11 months ended
February from a year earlier to 6,530. Consequently, the sales of its
Innova and Prado vehicles increased 17 percent to 32,166.
Toyota, based in Aichi, Japan and founded in 1933 by Kiichiro Toyoda,
is famed for manufacturing automobiles, trucks, buses and robots and
providing financial services. In 2006, the company reported a total
vehicle production of 9.018 million vehicles. So far, Toyota is the worlds
most profitable automaker.
Most analysts in the industry believe that Toyota will takeover General
Motors post as the largest automaker either late this year or in the
coming year. Last year, the automaker increased its annual vehicle
production by 1.7 million from 7.3 to nine million. This year, Toyotas
target annual production is 9.4 million vehicles. If the target is met, that
could pave way to a new automaker holding the worlds largest automaker
title.
About the Author
Jenny McLane is a 36 year old native of Iowa and has a knack for
research on cars and anything and everything about it. She works full time as
a Market Analyst for one of the leading car parts suppliers in the
country today.
