While a world-wide recession has slowed
motorcycle sales and production in North America, Europe, and other
places, India seems to have no such problem.
Honda has announced that it will build
a second motorcycle factory there and that 2,000 people will work in
it. Cost: about $100 million Cdn.
Growing demand in India for Honda’s
motorcycles has prompted the move, and Honda says it could double
production in the plant if necessary. Once the factory is on-line
late in 2011, it will make about 600,000 motorcycles a year, and
Honda’s total production in India will be 2.2 million vehicles a
year. The plant will be located near Delhi.
There’s only one other market of
comparable size for makers of motorcycles and other good things —
China, and sales of just over a million motorcycles there in 2009 set
a ninth straight record and were up 11 per cent over 2008 sales,
Honda said.
Biggest issue in Canada is the insurance that is required, get the rates under control and maybe the sales would increase.
Two years ago I sold in Montreal my CBR125R to a guy comming from Pakistan. It was the only really interested, even if the bike was near in mint condition. And lately, some Honda dealers discounted the unsold 2008 CBR125`s to $2495. I don`t know if it is because of the recession or there`s no big market for small bikes?
It’s funny and absurd at the same time how the companies and consumers see the world differently. Big disconnect …
Maybe, just maybe if they brought some of these ‘lower priced’ machines into Canada (like they already do with the CBR125R) they might sell more ? Just an idea,,,