Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Friday, Nov 25, 2005
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Friday, Nov 25, 2005 |
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Corporate
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Announcements `No plans for small car' R.Y. Narayanan
Coimbatore , Nov. 24 FORD India has no plans to enter the small car segment and would like to retain Ford Ikon as its entry-level model. The company, which launched Ford Fiesta in the C segment to compete with the likes of Toyota Corolla, is `excited' about the initial response the Fiesta variants have drawn, according to Mr P.K. Umashankar, General Manager-Customer Service Operations of Ford India. Speaking to Business Line at the launch of the Ford Fiesta in Coimbatore on Thursday, he said the C segment (cars in the Rs 4.5-7 lakh range) is the fastest growing in the country. While the car market clocked an annual growth of 6-7.5 per cent, the C segment grew two-and-half times more at about 18 per cent. While the entire car market is moving towards the one-million mark, the C segment is estimated to account for 2 lakh cars. The goal of Ford India is to get a chunk of this pie. He said the company's manufacturing facility near Chennai, which is working on two shifts, is fully geared to move into three shifts to cater to the growing demand. Asked if the problems faced by Ford in the US would have an impact on operations in India, he said except North America, Ford's operations in other parts of the world have not faced any problem. After the visit of Mr Bill Ford, Chairman and CEO of Ford Company to India last month to launch the Fiesta, the parent company infused $75 million into its Indian operations that reaffirmed the commitment of the parent company to its Indian venture, he said.
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