Top Stories 

Major fire breaks out at Mahindra's Nashik plant

Mahindra & Mahindra reportedly lost production of about 250 vehicles due to a major fire at Satpur plant that has been brought under control with the help of 25 fire tenders of the Nashik Municipal Corporation as well as the company's own fire-fighting unit.

According to reports, the fire broke out early morning in the Scorpio and Xylo unit of the company. Nobody was injured in the incident. For safety reasons the plant have been suspended in the first shift.
 
Nachiket Kulkarni, Head M & M's automobile plant was quoted as saying, the Scorpio plant of the company was gutted in the fire. We don't know the reason behind the fire as yet. We are also yet to estimate the exact amount of loss. 

Bolero and Verito production to restart fully and the Scorpio lines partially from the second shift onwards, reports added.

M&M resumes operations at Nashik plant

Statement from M&M on Nashik factory fire

India's car sales slow in April...Up only 3.4% YoY

India's domestic car sales grew by just 3.4% in April, slowing sharply over the previous month when fear of price increases prompted potential buyers to advance their purchases.

Companies sold 168,351 cars in the domestic market in April as against 162,813 cars in the same period last year, according to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

This is the lowest since December 2011 when domestic car sales stood at 159,325.

Sales of passenger cars jumped 20% in March, the biggest monthly gain in a year. Automakers had sold 229,866 cars in India in March, 211,402 units in February and 196,013 units in January.

Meanwhile, total two-wheeler sales rose to 1,157,108 units in April versus 1,043,010 units sold in the corresponding month a year earlier, SIAM data revealed today.

Commercial vehicle sales stood at 56,257 units in April versus 53,903 units sold in April 2011, SIAM data showed.

Within the two-wheeler space, sales of motorcycles rose by 6.5% to 861,602 vehicles last month.

Infocus News

IIFL recommends 'Buy' on Hero MotorCorp

IIFL Institutional Equities, a part of the IIFL Group, one of the leading players in the Indian financial services space, recommends “Buy’’ Hero MotorCorp.

According to IIFL reproHero Moto’s 4QFY12 operating results were in line with expectations. A higher-than-expected tax rate (19%) led to a 4% Eps miss. Our FY13 and FY14 estimates remain unchanged though, as tax rate is expected to return to 16% in FY13 (higher production in the tax-exempt Haridwar plant). We increase our TP from Rs2,410 to Rs2,550 as we roll over from 16x Sep ’13 Eps to 16x FY14 Eps.

4Q revenue was in line with our estimate. However, gross margin (down 30bp QoQ) came in lower as adverse currency impact on imports led to 1.6% increase in raw material cost per vehicle. As a result, Ebitda margin declined 30bp QoQ to 15.3%. However, at Rs9.3bn, absolute Ebitda was in line with our estimate, report stated

The management expects Hero Moto’s FY13 volumes to cross 6.8mn (~10% growth). The company will commence exports to new geographies in 1HFY13.

The company made a Rs500-1,000 price increase per vehicle in April, which should help margins, going forward.The management declared dividend of Rs45 per share, brokerage added.
The report was published by IIFL’s Institutional Equities Research desk.

Domestic News

Aston Martin opens showroom in South Delhi

With immediate effect, Aston Martin is officially open for business with a new four-car showroom in up-market South Delhi.  In addition to the customer reception area and new car gallery, finished in distinctive Aston Martin Corporate Identity, the facility will also incorporate an approved service centre to cater for the needs of Aston Martin owners throughout the area. The total facility, sales and after sales, measures 13,000 square feet.

Aston Martin continues to accelerate its dealership expansion programme in the region, which started with the first showroom in Mumbai in April 2011.

Located in the prestigious Mohan Co-Operative industrial area, the showroom is operated by Select Cars which has a strong reputation in the Indian luxury car market. The opening of the new facility will give customers from across the city an opportunity to experience the British car marque’s 14 model line-up of hand crafted luxury sports cars. The dealership will provide customers with access to selected models from the range including the V12 Vantage, Vantage S (Coupe and / or Roadster), V8 Vantage Coupe, V8 Vantage Roadster,  DB9 Coupe, DB9 Volante, DBS Coupe, DBS Volante and the four-door sports car; Rapide.

Aston Martin is a modern, exclusive sports car brand with a unique heritage instantly recognised around the world. In distinctively fusing the latest technology, time-honoured craftsmanship and graceful styling to produce a range of critically acclaimed performance sports cars, Aston Martin has been elevated to a position as one of the world’s coolest brands.

SKODA India launches Ambition Variant of Superb in Chandigarh

ŠKODA AUTO India has introduced a new version in the Superb model line. The all new Superb Ambition version will start at Rs. 18.09 lacs ex showroom Chandigarh and will allow greater accessibility to the Superb range. However, while making the model line more accessible, ŠKODA has retained Superb’s class-leading values in safety, comfort and efficiency. 

The car was unveiled by Chandigarh girl – Vanya Mishra, Pantaloons Femina Miss India World 2012 along with Kamal Basu, Head-Marketing, ŠKODA Auto India and Vijay Passi, Dealer Principal, Krishna Auto Sales.

Commenting on this occasion,  Kamal Basu, Head-Marketing, ŠKODA Auto India said, “Post the successful launch of the Superb Ambition in Mumbai, we are pleased to bring the Ambition to Chandigarh through ŠKODA’s authorized dealer - Krishna Auto Sales. I also take this opportunity to congratulate Vanya for winning PFMI 2012 pageant and gracing this occasion”. 

Talking further on the launch,  Basu added, “With the introduction of Superb Ambition we are now extending the model line with greater accessibility while retaining Superb’s class values in comfort, safety and efficacy. Chandigarh is a very important market for SKODA and our cars have been well received by the customers here. This success couldn’t have been possible without SKODA’s long standing association with Krishna Auto Sales. We are also certain that this new Superb variant will appeal to audiences who are seeking opulence packaged with a great price.”

The Ambition variant will be powered by the award winning 1.8 TSI engine with a 6-speed manual transmission and 2.0 TDI CR with 6 speed Automatic DSG transmission. Both engines will aim to provide better fuel efficiency along with enhanced driving experience. 

Exterior package – identical to the Elegance (different alloy wheel design / same size)

Comfort & Interior: Ivory NAPA leather package / Wood décor / lounge step / retractable screens for rear windows & rear windscreen / dual zone climatronic / Electronically foldable mirrors / 12 way adjustable front seats / 

Safety: Class leading 8 airbags / Corner function / Auto dimming interior & external mirror / braking: ABS / EBD / HBA / TCS / ASR / EDL
Winner of six awards and the no.1 selling car in its segment, the ŠKODA Superb has established itself as the segment benchmark. These additions to the model line will further consolidate the car’s dominating position in the segment and open the doors to opulence for the uncompromising customers seeking excellence at an excellent price. 

True to its name, the car delivers a simply Superb experience. The Ambition will be available in the following colors: Amethyst Royal, Candy White, Magic Black & Rosso Brunello. 

FIAT India inaugurates its first exclusive dealership in Hyderabad

Fiat to set up 20 showrooms in India by end-2012

Discovery Turbo brings unique cars customised by automotive styling expert

Apollo Tyres Q4 net profit dips 18%

Hyundai launches 5 Star assurance Program for Santro and Next Gen i10

Nitish Tipnis to head sales and marketing of Hover Automotive India

Maruti raises prices of diesel DZire by up to Rs. 12,000 : reports

India unaffected by Suzuki Swift's recall : reports

Tata Motors tests MDI air engine technology on its vehicles

Mahindra launches Alfa Plus

Neeraj Banka, Director, Autotrendz Impex Pvt Ltd

Cummins India to increase prices of generator set

Global News

Porsche SE reports substantial profit in Q1 2012

In the first quarter of the current fiscal year 2012, Porsche Automobil Holding SE (Porsche SE), Stuttgart, reported a profit after tax of 327 million euro at group level. The profit was primarily attributable to the good development of Porsche SE's two investments in the Volkswagen group and the Porsche Zwischenholding GmbH group. The profit from investments accounted for at equity amounted to 1.169 billion euro for the period from 1 January to 31 March 2012. This was counterbalanced in particular by a non-cash special effect recognized as an expense from the adjustment of the valuation of the put and call options for the shares in Porsche Zwischenholding GmbH remaining with Porsche SE totaling minus 810 million euro.

Since year-end 2011, the net liquidity of Porsche SE, i.e., cash, cash equivalents and time deposits less liabilities to banks, increased by 14 million euro to minus 1.508 billion euro. After the end of the quarter, Porsche SE received a net dividend from Volkswagen AG for the fiscal year 2011 of 331 million euro, which had a further positive effect on the liquidity of Porsche SE. 

In the first three months of the fiscal year 2012, the Porsche Zwischenholding GmbH group increased its unit sales by 29.0 percent to 30,231 vehicles and its sales revenue by 32.4 percent to 3.025 billion euro. The operating result increased by 18.4 percent to 528 million euro. The Volkswagen group increased its unit sales by 11.3 percent to 2,259,542 vehicles in the first quarter of 2012. With sales revenue of 47.326 billion euro (up 26.3 percent), the operating result increased by 10.2 percent to 3.209 billion euro.

Porsche SE and Volkswagen AG still aim to achieve the integrated automotive group. Both companies continue to examine whether alternatives to the measures provided for in the basic agreement are available. 

Toyota unveils electric SUV 'RAV4 EV' in US market

Magna to assemble Infiniti models

GM says China auto sales hit record high for April

Škoda global deliveries up 4.1% to ~81,400 units

Volkswagen continues strong vehicle deliveries from January to April