The Hindu : Business : Bajaj Auto to foray into Indonesia

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, May 20, 2004

Business

Business

Bajaj Auto to foray into Indonesia

By Our Staff Correspondent

MUMBAI, MAY 19. The Joint Managing Director of Bajaj Auto Limited (BAL), Rajiv Bajaj, said the company was entering Indonesia this year. "We will set up an assembly plant, first for three-wheelers and then for two-wheelers. The Indonesian market for two and three-wheelers is very large at 3.2 million units annually. We expect the plant to be operational before the end of the year. We will build our presence there in 3-5 years. We have been working for the last two years to obtain the clearances from Indonesia and will get it in the next 2-3 months. The plant is being set up in partnership with a player who is not in the automobile sector," said Mr. Bajaj. Further, he said BAL would supply Wind-125, Caliber and Byk to Kawasaki in Philippines. "This year we will work with Kawasaki to open new markets and start supplying small number of units in Philippines".

Meanwhile, the company announced a net profit of Rs. 731.50 cores for 2003-04 against Rs. 538.40 crores in the previous year. The turnover was higher at Rs. 5,270.30 crores against Rs. 4,485.70 crores. The company announced a dividend of 250 per cent or Rs. 25 per cent share (Rs. 14 per share). The gross profit, after interest, was Rs. 1,205.30 crores (Rs. 1005.30 crores).

During the year, sales of motorcycles were up 18 per cent, two-wheelers 3 per cent at 12.88 lakh units and three-wheelers 18 per cent at 2.29 lakh units. Total two and three-wheeler sales were up 5 per cent at 15.18 lakh units. Exports were higher by 66 per cent at 1.56 lakh units.

The Vice President, Business Development & Marketing, R. L. Ravichandran, said, "In 2001-02, our share of the motorcycle market was 42 per cent and this went down to 32 per cent in the following year. This year, our strategy is to gain market share in the entry level motorcycles".

The company launched CT-100 this month and will be launching it nation-wide next month. In the executive segment, it is planning to introduce K-60 in the next quarter. In the premium end, Pulsar crossed the cumulative sales of 5 lakh units in 29 months.

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