- German luxury car maker Mercedes-Benz today launched sports
utility vehicle ML 63, priced at Rs 1.49 crore (ex-showroom Delhi), expanding
its AMG range of cars in India.
- Chevrolet India has received the DMAi gold award for the
newly designed Chevrolet India website, which is based on Chevrolet’s global
standards, and a bronze award for the successful ‘Enjoy Voyage’ pre-launch
campaign executed in May last year. The DMAi Awards, which are conducted
annually, honour excellence in marketing and advertising campaigns that have
raised the bar of originality, response strategy, interactivity and impact.
- Tata Motors today reported 7.65 per cent decline in its
global sales, including that of Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), to 75,026 units in
April.The company had sold 81,241 units in April last year, Tata Motors said in
a statement.
- Bajaj Auto has recorded its highest ever turnover of Rs
20,865 crore for 2013-14. However, this is actually flat growth given that its
year-earlier turnover was Rs 20,793 crore. Net profits for FY2014 were Rs 3,243
crore, up from Rs 3,044 crore in the year-earlier period, up six percent.
- Apollo Tyres' consolidated net profit doubled to Rs 281.62
crore in the quarter ended March 31, mainly on account of increased sales.Profit
was Rs 141.05 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial
year, Apollo Tyres said in a filing to the BSE.Consolidated total income rose
to Rs 3,229.27 crore from Rs 3,041.99 crore a year earlier, it added.
- In a bid to drive sales of its AMG brand in India, luxury
carmaker Mercedes-Benz India has opened its first AMG Performance Centre in
Delhi at T&T Motors. It also rolled out its high-performance ML 63 AMG SUV
at a price tag of Rs 1.49 crore (ex-showroom Delhi). Similar outlets are to be
opened in Bangalore and Mumbai soon.
- With the launch of D-max in India, Isuzu also opened
its first dealership in Mumbai which adds to its current tally of 8 other dealerships
in Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, Madurai, Vishakhapatnam, Tirupati
and Cochin covering all the 4 south Indian states.
- Omax Autos, which manufactures frame assemblies for the
commercial vehicle segment and also caters to the two-wheeler, three-wheeler,
off-highway, passenger car and railway segments, has expanded its work to
encompass complete vehicle assembly. The company has won an initial order of 20
vehicle assemblies from a well-known truck OEM; its Bangalore plant rolled out
its first truck assembly in March 2014.
- Following the consolidation of international operations in
November 2013, American car maker General Motors’s Indian subsidiary is being
considered as a future global sourcing base for compact vehicles.The report on
Economic Times says GM India has frozen a plan to integrate exports into its
business for the first time in its 18-year stint.GM India’s top official
confirmed to IAB on the sidelines of the Beat facelift’s launch that exports
would begin later in the year, but stopped short of sharing specifics. ET
has learned that exports kick off this year with the Chevrolet Beat hatchback.
The first market is Chile, followed by Mexico, Peru and the Caribbean in 2015.
- Hyundai Motor Co's South Korean labour union has demanded
higher pay and bonuses and more cuts to working hours, as the automaker heads
into annual wage talks in June under the threat of industrial action.Any strike
action in South Korea - which makes nearly 40 percent of Hyundai vehicles sold
globally - could disrupt supply around the world as the company fights to
reverse a fall in profits linked to the stronger won and competition from the
likes of Volkswagen AG.
- The Norma Group, an international market and technology
leader for engineered joining technology, has started production in its second
manufacturing plant in China in Changzhou, 200km outside Shanghai. The new
facility was set up to meet the greater demand for metal-based joining
solutions in the Asia-Pacific region. Spread across 8,000 square metres, the
new plant will produce about 45 million pieces of clamps per year for both
Western and Asian automotive manufacturers.
