Automotive Updates - 13th June 2014

• Terming India among the fastest growing markets, US-based carmaker Ford today said it has decided to make the country as its export hub."We have decided that India will be an export hub for Ford. We are exporting to over 50 countries from here and are increasing it overtime," Ford Motor President and chief executive officer Alan Mulally said.

• The government of Sri Lanka has placed an order for 2,200 Viking buses with Ashok Leyland. This is the one of the largest orders by the Sri Lankan Transport Board (SLTB) as the government aims to modernise its existing fleet and significantly improve the country’s public transport network.

•  India's largest two-wheeler maker Hero MotoCorp is planning to enter Brazil by 2016 as it looks to consolidate position in the fast growing South American market.

• Tata Motors  today reported 5.14 per cent decline in global sales, including that of Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), to 77,575 units in May.The company had sold 81,783 units in the same month last year.

•  Ford Motor Co has agreed to correct its fuel economy estimates for six car models to correct errors found in an internal company audit, the U.S. environmental regulator said on Thursday.

•  Petrol and diesel prices will be hiked by 75 paise a litre each if the government accepts an expert panel report that recommends nationwide fuel standards be upgraded to eliminate cancer-causing particle emissions by 2020.

• The Union Budget 2014-15, to be presented next month, is likely to make a provision of Rs 250 crore for FY’15 for putting on wheels the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan 2020 (NEMMP) announced last year, say sources in the know. The NEMMP pushes for national energy security, mitigation of the adverse impact of vehicles on the environment and growth of domestic manufacturing capabilities. The plan also highlights the huge potential for environment-friendly electric vehicle (including hybrids) technologies by 2020.

• Investors bought less than half the Hero MotoCorp Ltd shares that were put on sale on Friday by private equity firm Bain Capital that holds an 8.6% stake in the Indian two-wheeler company. According to data published by Bloomberg news agency, about 3.73 million shares changed hands in five block deals. Mint had reported on Friday that the private equity firm was offering 8.57 million shares, which translates into 4.29% of outstanding share capital of the auto maker.

• Suzuki Motor Corp Chairman Osamu Suzuki said it was unclear when an international arbitration court will rule on its 2-1/2 year dispute with Volkswagen AG over their failed partnership.

• Alan Mulally, the outgoing chief of US auto major Ford, called Narendra Modi one of his heroes and said the prime minister's focus on economic development will work well for India.

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• In an interaction with ET, Mulally said he has not meet Modi. "I have watched him over the years and I think he is going to be great prime minister because he believes in economic development. I love his focus on infrastructure," Mulally said.

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