Light & Medium Truck Magazine
Global automakers may lose production of 600,000 vehicles by the end of the month as the earthquake in Japan halts assembly lines and work at suppliers, Bloomberg News reported.
About 320,000 vehicles may have been lost worldwide as of March 24, and manufacturing at plants in North America may be affected when parts supplies start running out as soon as early April, said Michael Robinet, vice president of Lexington, Massachusetts-based IHS Automotive, Bloomberg said.
Auto Business News
Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd, an India-based vehicle maker, is establishing a tractor plant in Zaheerabad in Andhra Pradesh.
The automaker is investing INR3bn in the project that will have an installed capacity of 100,000 tractors which can be increased if demand requires.
Transport Topics Magazine
Trucking components maker ArvinMeritor Inc. said Wednesday it has officially changed its name to Meritor Inc.
“With the divestitures of our light-vehicle businesses now completed, we are focused on commercial vehicle and industrial markets in every major region of the world,” the company said in a statement.
Auto Business News
Volvo Trucks, a subsidiary of AB Volvo (NASDAQ: VOLV) (STO: VOLVA) (STO: VOLVB), has started sales of its heavy hybrid trucks in Europe.
The company claims its hybrid trucks sold under the name Volvo FE Hybrid can offer fuel savings of up to 30 percent. It expects them mainly to be utilized in distribution and refuse operations in an urban environment.
China Daily Information Company
SAIC Motor, China's biggest automaker, has recently unveiled its commercial vehicle marque Maxus Datong during a press conference held at the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum. SAIC Motor's top brass, including Chairman Hu Maoyuan, President Chen Hong and Vice President Xiao Guopu, attended the event.
Maxus Datong, which was developed based on combined cutting-edge technologies of passenger and commercial cars, will broaden the company's commercial vehicle portfolio that now includes Roewe and MG. The launching of Maxus Datong represents an important step as part of SAIC Motor's differentiation strategy.
DieselProgress.com
In a move which significantly bolsters its plans for worldwide expansion, China's LiuGong Machinery Corp., is buying Poland's HSW (Huta Stalowa Wola) Construction Equipment Division and its distribution subsidiary, Dressta Co, Ltd.
The acquisition by the Chinese construction equipment company is the strongest signal yet that it wants to dig deeply into markets outside its Chinese heartland.
IHS Global Insight Daily Analysis
Tata Motors is in discussions to acquire the car manufacturing facility of Poland's Fabryka Samochodow Osobowych (FSO), reports the Financial Express. Citing a source close to the matter, the article states that the company plans to fund the acquisition through its internal revenues.
The report adds that the company has around USD1 billion of funds in place to finance these kinds of acquisitions. the FSO facility has a production capacity of around 150,000 units per annum (upa), although it is underutilized under its current contract manufacturing deal for General Motors' (GM) Aveo model, with just 44,000 units manufactured in 2010.
Automotive News Europe
China's Dongfeng Motor Group is in advanced talks to buy a stake of about 30 percent in German auto supplier Getrag GmbH to gain access to transmission technology, people familiar with the matter said.
Getrag is one of the world's largest automotive transmission manufacturers and a major supplier to Ford Motor Co. as well as former Ford subsidiary Volvo Car Corp., which is now owned by China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. Getrag also supplies Dongfeng, according to the company's Web site.
DieselProgress.com
JCB said it has invested $30 million in a new engine plant in India which has the capacity to produce 100,000 units annually.
Complementing its factory in Derbyshire, U.K., the plant at Ballabgarh, Delhi will be the first time JCB has built its Dieselmax engines outside of the U.K.