Latest news with #carimports
Bloomberg
15-07-2025
- Automotive
- Bloomberg
Tesla Makes Long-Awaited India Debut
Live on Bloomberg TV CC-Transcript 00:00Alicia, talk to us about how significant this move is. Well, good morning, Hassan. It is a significant move in that after years of back and forth and stop start negotiations with the Indian government over its high and steep tariffs on car imports, Tesla has finally decided to enter the Indian market. Look for PM Modi, who has made local manufacturing the cornerstone of the Indian industrial push. This is not a very satisfying move given that Tesla is only going to make a bit of a cautious start, a soft landing, if you will, by importing cars into the into the Indian market to really test the waters first. What you're seeing is a Tesla launching with two experience centres, one here in Mumbai in the financial capital and one in New Delhi, which is set to open up later this month. So it is significant because I mean, it is a milestone, of course, because it is the world's most valuable company. India is also a complex market, too big to ignore. It is the third largest stock market in the world, so it does not have decided to dip its doors. It's not the kind of full fledged manufacturing push that India was hoping for, but it will allow the brand to really gauge demand for the market for its cars with with the country's affluent buyers. Way to debut. He had just been pretty low key. How do you explain the approach that Tesla is taking to a huge market like India? No, absolutely. It is low key, especially considering how the other global carmakers have approached the Indian market. So we're not really seeing a PR or a media blitz around this launch. There's no Bollywood celebrity cutting a ribbon here, and it is a very Tesla like playbook. Clearly, it is banking on the organic brand. All of that the brand, you know, has in the global markets to really do the work in India as well. The best way to look at these experience centers will be as kind of live market experiments. Tesla is about to find out how many people walk into these stores. The kind of buzz that the brand is able to generate and then how that buzz really translates to people wanting to pony up the cash and be a very steep premium to actually buy these cars in India. Big questions being asked right now. One of the key ones for for Tesla. He has three big questions that Tesla will have to address in India. The first one and the one to immediately address is around pricing with 70% import tariffs on test scores. They will fall in an entirely different price bracket than the Tesla cars do in the U.S. and Europe. So one will have to see whether even the luxury car buyers will want to pay these steep premiums for a Tesla badge in India. The second one is really the policy angle. For years, Tesla has tried to negotiate and impress upon India that it is its car market is highly protected, and particularly for EVs, which is a cleaner emission technology. There should be concessions given to new players wanting to access the market and gauge demand for their products. India is also currently discussing trade terms with the US and European Union. So if a favorite between will comes up there, then that may change Tesla's plans. And the biggest one, of course, is whether all of this will lead to manufacturing in India. And that's something we have to watch for. For YouLive TV
Japan Times
04-07-2025
- Automotive
- Japan Times
Suzuki is becoming a top Japan importer with made-in-India cars
Suzuki beat out Mercedes-Benz to become Japan's top car importer in June, thanks to the Jimny Nomad and another popular small SUV assembled in India. The Japanese carmaker brought 4,780 vehicles into Japan last month, up a dramatic 230-fold from a year earlier, overtaking Germany's Mercedes-Benz, according to data from the Japan Automobile Importers Association on Friday. Suzuki also clinched the top stop in April. Although Honda is also known as a longtime importer of its own cars into Japan, Suzuki's feat is notable because it's one of the smaller manufacturers in terms of total global output, well behind market leader Toyota. Automobile imports have become a hot topic again with U.S. President Donald Trump deploying the threat of tariffs to pressure Japan to import more cars made in America. "Japanese consumers don't particularly care whether vehicles are produced in Thailand, India or Japan if they want a particular car,' said Takeshi Miyao, an analyst at automotive consultancy Carnorama. He argues that General Motors, Ford and other US American carmakers aren't able to gain traction in Japan because they don't offer products such as smaller kei cars that appeal to local buyers. The Jimny Nomad, an extended five-door version of Suzuki's popular Jimny model, has been a runaway success. Priced from ¥2.65 million ($18,300), the vehicle attracted about 50,000 pre-orders before it went on sale in April, even though Suzuki had set an initial monthly sales target of 1,200 units. That forced the carmaker to halt orders after just four days due to overwhelming demand. Suzuki plans to ramp up production of the Jimny Nomad in India from July, which will probably boost import numbers even more. Suzuki also began importing another India-produced compact SUV, the Fronx, in October. Suzuki has a long history of manufacturing and selling cars and motorcycles in India, where were labor and production costs are still low. Suzuki predicts that India's car market will reach 20 million units in annual sales by 2047. It's targeting a 50% market share by Maruti Suzuki India, the Japanese automaker's subsidiary, by 2030. Honda has also seen success with its India-produced compact SUV, the WR-V, which was introduced in March of last year at an affordable starting price of around ¥2.1 million. Honda's imported registrations surged about 22-fold year-on-year to 45,107 vehicles last year. The carmaker was also the top importer into Japan during the first three months of 2025. For the first half, Honda ranked second in imports with approximately 22,000 vehicles, trailing Mercedes-Benz's 25,016 units. Suzuki was third, while Nissan was in ninth place with its Thailand-produced Kicks crossover. Jeep, part of European carmaker Stellantis, performed relatively well with more than 4,000 units sold from January to June, outpacing imports by GM and Ford.
Bloomberg
02-07-2025
- Automotive
- Bloomberg
The Great Car-Buying Bonanza Is (Probably) Over
By and Rachael Lewis-Krisky Save Never miss an episode. Follow The Big Take daily podcast today. The auto sector saw buyers race to dealerships after President Trump announced 25% tariffs on car imports and parts from outside the US. And according to new data this week, sales from major automakers appear to be losing steam ahead of Trump's July 9 tariff deadline.
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Big, Left-Hand Drive US Cars a Tough Sell in Japan: Ishiba
(Bloomberg) — American cars in general are a tough sell in Japan, according to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who added his government needs to discuss with the US how to boost car imports from America. Struggling Downtowns Are Looking to Lure New Crowds Sprawl Is Still Not the Answer California Exempts Building Projects From Environmental Law What Gothenburg Got Out of Congestion Pricing 'We can't sell left-hand drive, huge, fuel-inefficient cars made in the US,' Ishiba said Wednesday. 'We'll discuss with the US how to produce better products and bring them into Japan, while considering Japan's safety.' The prime minister's comments, made during a pre-election debate with opposition party leaders, come as US President Donald Trump revives his long-held criticism over the lack of American cars in Japan. The president is threatening Japan with across-the-board tariffs of up to 35% on its exports to the US, beyond the 24% penciled in on July 9. Separate to the broader tariffs, a 25% levy on cars has been a sticking point in the nations' ongoing trade talks. The car sector is responsible for most of Washington's trade deficit with Tokyo — something Trump is trying to cut with tariffs — while it's a key economic pillar for Japan. Trump lashed out at Japan over cars in a Fox News interview that aired Sunday. 'So we give Japan no cars. They won't take our cars, right? And yet we take millions and millions of their cars into the United States. It's not fair,' Trump said. Japan's May trade data showed that car exports to the US declined 24.7% by value in May, but only 3.9% by volume — a sign that Japanese carmakers are taking a hit to profits by cutting prices to maintain shipments. 'If the number of cars sold to the US decreases, we will expand domestic demand and export markets to protect Japan's industry, while creating jobs in the US,' Ishiba said. 'We will pursue both approaches.' SNAP Cuts in Big Tax Bill Will Hit a Lot of Trump Voters Too How to Steal a House America's Top Consumer-Sentiment Economist Is Worried China's Homegrown Jewelry Superstar Pistachios Are Everywhere Right Now, Not Just in Dubai Chocolate ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. By subscribing, you are agreeing to Yahoo's Terms and Privacy Policy Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
19-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
China floods Brazil with cheap EVs triggering backlash
By Alessandro Parodi and Victoria Waldersee (Reuters) -The world's largest car-carrying ship - with the equivalent of 20 football fields of vehicles - completed its maiden journey late last month to dock in Brazil's Itajai port. But not everyone is cheering its arrival. BYD, China's top producer of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, is offering Brazilian car shoppers relatively low-priced options in a market where the green-car movement is still in its infancy. Brazilian auto-industry officials and labor leaders worry that the vast influx of cars from BYD and other Chinese automakers will set back domestic auto production and hurt jobs. BYD has deployed a growing fleet of cargo ships to accelerate its expansion overseas, with Brazil becoming its top target, according to Reuters analysis of shipping data and company statements. The late-May shipment was the fourth of the Chinese carmaker's ships to dock in Brazil this year, totaling around 22,000 vehicles, according to Reuters calculations. BYD, the world's top producer of electric and plug-in hybrid cars, is the largest among several Chinese brands targeting Brazil for growth. China-built vehicle imports are expected to grow nearly 40% this year, to about 200,000, according to Brazil's main auto association. That would account for roughly 8% of total light-vehicle registrations. Industry and labor groups say China is taking advantage of Brazil's temporarily low tariff barriers to ramp up its exports rather than investing to build Brazilian factories and create jobs. They are lobbying Brazil's government to accelerate by a year a plan to increase Brazil's tariff on all EV imports to 35% from 10%, rather than gradually phasing in higher levies. "Countries around the world started closing their doors to the Chinese, but Brazil didn't," said Aroaldo da Silva, a Mercedes-Benz production worker and president of IndustriALL Brasil, a confederation of unions across six industrial sectors. "China made use of that." BYD did not respond to a request for comment on the industry's concerns. SURPLUS CARS Brazil has emerged as a flashpoint in the China auto industry's torrid global expansion. A growing surplus of new cars being pumped out of Chinese factories has led to an export boom over the past five years, helping China pass Japan in 2023 to become the world's top vehicle exporter. Much of this excess is being shipped overseas, to markets like Europe, Southeast Asia and Latin America. Brazil offers an enticing destination due to its large market - it is the sixth-largest car market by volume - where established players including Volkswagen, General Motors and Jeep-maker Stellantis have been building cars domestically for decades. The Brazilian government has set policies aimed at growing sales of electric and plug-in hybrid cars, BYD's specialty. Meanwhile, BYD's path for growth elsewhere has narrowed, both domestically and overseas. At home, the company is mired in a bruising price war that has seen it slash the price of its entry-level Seagull to below $10,000, squeezing profit margins. Abroad, governments have erected stiff trade barriers for Chinese cars, including a 45.3% duty in Europe and a tariff of more than 100% in the United States, along with a ban on Chinese software in cars. For years, Brazilian officials have taken steps to protect the market from unfettered access by Chinese car companies. But it has been slower to react and less aggressive than other nations. In 2015, Brazil eliminated tariffs on manufacturers like BYD to spur electric vehicle adoption, but last year it reintroduced a 10% tariff on electric cars to encourage investment in the domestic auto industry. The tariff is scheduled to increase every six months before hitting 35% in 2026. Brazil's Ministry of Development, Industry & Foreign Trade told Reuters that a request by Brazil's auto association, ANFAVEA, and others to pull forward the higher tariff was under review. "The schedule for the gradual resumption of tariffs, with decreasing quotas, was established to allow companies to continue with their development plans and respect the maturity of manufacturing in the country," a ministry spokesperson added. BYD and other Chinese companies also are taking advantage of a policy in Brazil that allows them to import toll-free up to $169 million for plug-in hybrids imported by July 2025 and $226 million for battery-electric cars. That incentivizes front loading of vehicle shipments to fully benefit from the toll-free quotas before they expire, analysts said. 'EXCESS OF IMPORTS' BYD's export strategy hinges on the carmaker being able to continue growing shipments without triggering resistance from local authorities. But industry representatives in Brazil have grown increasingly worried that BYD's plans to begin domestic vehicle production are being pushed off. In 2023, government officials cheered BYD's plan to purchase a former Ford plant in the state of Bahia, viewing it as a way to create manufacturing jobs and spur the country's green transition. But an investigation into labor abuses on the construction site pushed back its timeline for "fully functional" production to December 2026, local officials said in May. Another Chinese automaker, GWM, also delayed by more than a year its plan to start making cars at a former Mercedes-Benz plant. The Brazilian government expects the plant to begin operating this year. "We support the arrival of new brands in Brazil to produce, promote the components sector, create jobs and bring new technologies,' Igor Calvet, president of ANFAVEA, told Reuters. 'But from the moment that an excess of imports causes lower investment in production in Brazil, that worries us." Da Silva of IndustriALL said his confederation of unions had not heard of any local supplier relationships being developed or contracts being signed for the BYD plant, as would normally be expected 18 months from the start of production. "Even if the factory is here - what value is it really adding if the components, development, and technology is all from abroad?" da Silva said. BYD did not respond to a request for comment on its supplier network. President Lula da Silva's left-wing Workers Party government is scrambling to protect jobs and the environment as it aims to both revive Brazil's industrial economy and restore its green credentials ahead of hosting the COP30 global climate summit this November. Still, the country's nascent green-car movement leans on Chinese imports, which account for more than 80% of Brazil's electric-car sales, according to Brazil's EV association, ABVE. The country has abundant mineral resources including lithium and other key ingredients to make EV batteries. But the infrastructure to produce all the necessary components for electric cars does not exist yet, said Ricardo Bastos, director of government relations at GWM Brazil and president of ABVE. GWM, which bought a factory in Brazil in 2021 with capacity for 50,000 cars a year and is due to start producing its Haval H6 SUV there this July, is in talks with around 100 Brazil-based suppliers on setting up contracts, Bastos told Reuters. "This year, imported cars will coexist alongside cars produced in Brazil," Bastos said. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
