Suzuki Motor sees global car sales up 10 percent in 2006
Reuters Automotive News / January 20, 2006 - 9:00 am
TOKYO -- Suzuki Motor Corp. predicted on Friday that its global car sales would rise 10 percent to a record 2.22 million units this year, boosted by robust demand for the Swift and other compact cars abroad.
The solid expansion would follow a rosy 2005, when its global car sales topped the 2 million-unit mark for the first time and Suzuki retained its crown as Japan's top seller of mini-vehicles for the 33rd straight year.
"With the exception of China, all regions have a backlog of orders for the Swift," CEO Osamu Suzuki told a news conference. "We're going to continue growing in overseas markets," he added.
Suzuki expects healthy overseas sales and a weaker yen to drive it to its sixth straight year of record profits for the 12 months ending March 31, with an operating profit of 108 billion yen, or $938.8 million at current exchange rates.
Consensus forecasts from 17 brokerages surveyed by Reuters Estimates put Suzuki's 2005/06 operating profit higher at 114.8 billion yen, rising to 122.4 billion yen for the following year.
CEO Suzuki said capital spending would likely remain at a high level -- around 220 billion yen ($1.90 billion) -- in the business year starting in April as it adds more production capacity in Hungary and India.
For the year to March 31, Suzuki, owned one-fifth by General Motors and Japan's fourth-biggest automaker by market capitalization, earmarked 280 billion yen for capital expenditures
With production reaching a limit at its existing 500,000 unit-a-year assembly plant in India, Suzuki is planning a second 100,000-unit factory in the fast-growing car market with unit Maruti Udyog Ltd. this year.
Suzuki is also set to open a joint diesel engine plant in India with Italy's Fiat S.p.A. in May.
By region, the automaker is expecting sales in China to jump 38 percent to 200,000 units in 2006, European sales by 17 percent to 310,000 units and South Asian sales by 16 percent to 710,000.
It expects more modest growth in North America, to 100,000 vehicles from 90,000 last year, with some help from the SX-4 compact SUV to be launched later this year.
Also the world's third-biggest motorcycle maker, Suzuki said it expected sales of motorbikes and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) to rise 15 percent to 3.75 million units in 2006.
Its worldwide car production is forecast to rise 10 percent to 2.339 million vehicles, it said in a statement.
Last year, global car output rose 6 percent to a record 2,124,584 units, while sales grew 7 percent to 2,010,000 units.
