automotive Updates - 27th and 28th June 2015

• Ricardo and Beiqi Foton Motor Co Ltd (Foton) of China have signed two contracts at a ceremony at Lancaster House, London, in the presence of Guo Jinlong, secretary of the Beijing Municipal Committee and Member of the Political Bureau, and Sajid Javid, UK Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills. Headquartered in Beijing, China, Beiqi Foton Motor Co Ltd or Foton designs and manufactures commercial vehicles, including medium and heavy-duty trucks, light-duty trucks, vans, pickups, and buses, and is one of China’s largest and most diversified manufacturers in this sector. - See more at: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-international/ricardo-help-china-foton-develop-litre-petrol-engine-8717#sthash.bulBcfOA.dpuf

• Hyundai Motor India Ltd, the country’s leading premium car manufacturer and the largest passenger car exporter today, unveiled India’s most awaited stylish, powerful and dynamic SUV - ‘CRETA’. The CRETA marks Hyundai’s entry in growing SUV segment with strong product offering boosting Hyundai’s product line up to a robust 10 product portfolio. Hyundai is set to redefine the SUV segment with its globally acclaimed & much appreciated “Fluidic Sculpture 2.0” design, superior driving dynamics, high end safety features along with robust body structure, multiple powertrain options & engineering excellence that has gone into making of CRETA. (Auto- Samiksha)

• After plentiful rains in June, the Met department expects less than normal precipitation over the next two months and has advised the agriculture ministry to keep a contingency plan ready.According to Laxman Singh Rathore, director general of the India Meteorological Department, rainfall could be deficient by 8% and 10% in July and August, respectively. .(Etauto.com)

• Bajaj Auto, one of the leading motorcycle brands in India, has recently achieved the coveted position of being the dominant market shareholder in the super sports segment. The segment that is most popular amongst the bike enthusiasts, Bajaj Auto has only recently become the dominant leader in this area where the throne was earlier held by the KTM line-up. Bajaj has revealed to the public that the company’s market share in the super sports segment has risen phenomenally in the recent years. From a mere 10% share in the month of June in 2013, Bajaj Auto has gone up to a whopping 59% as recently as May 2015.(cartrade.com)

• Renault will invest more in Formula E after a successful debut season for the world's first electric racing series, chief executive Carlos Ghosn said on Sunday."We are going to be bigger in Formula E. You are going to see us much more involved in Formula E," he told a news conference at the final round of the season in London's Battersea Park.(Etauto.com)

• This all new Mahindra Jeeto is an SCV (Small Commercial Vehicle) launched recently in Mumbai. The production of this high-end SCV will be carried on in the company’s Zaheerabad plant in Telangana, which has recently been expanded to a higher production rate. This Mahindra Jeeto has been targeted to sustain the market along with the highly competitive Tata Ace range of SCVs and even overpower the market occupied by the latter.The officials at Mahindra and Mahindra stated that they soon will be launching a passenger variant of Jeeto too. The officials seem to be charmed by their 11 bhp and 16 bhp engines, which, according to them, are good enough for Passenger Commercial vehicle segments. Despite all this, the date of launch of this passenger segment Jeeto has not been released. (cartrade.com)