RI Export Toyota's Into The Middle East

Indonesia unit of Japan posted a sharp increase in Toyota Motor in export in the first quarter thanks in part to an increase in demand for sedan Vios from Middle Eastern countries.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia (TMMIN) says that delivery vehicles in the form of completely built units (CBU) rose 30.3 percent, far higher than the initial target, to 44,000 units from January to March.

Exports to the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia and key buyers to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), surged 30 percent, said I Made Dana Fielding, the Corporation and external relations director at TMMIN.

The Middle East is the major export destination of the company, accounting for about 70 percent of the overall exports.

"The first quarter results as well, we are optimistic the trend can be continued in the second quarter," he said, adding that despite the achievements, the company maintains its target of 10 percent export increase in a full year.

Higher growth in delivery was due in large part to a surge in demand for car-makers sedan Vios, which began to give to the seven countries of the Middle East, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, in March last year. Vios sales tripled to 10.247 units in the first quarter from a year earlier.

The largest contributor to exports export, sport utility vehicle (SUV) Fortuner, also surged 14.7 percent to 13.763 units.

Another favorite model, multi purpose vehicle (MPV) Innova, however, saw modest gains of 2.6 percent to 3.934 units. Delivery of new entrants to the portfolio of cheap exports, green car Agya, which the company began exporting to the Philippines, a significant rise of 2.993 percent to 84,18 units.

Significant achievement in export quarterly gives the influence to TMMIN, a joint venture between Japan's largest carmaker Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) and diversified group Astra International issuers, after domestic sales through Toyota's sales and marketing arm, Toyota Astra Motor (TAM), shrank during that period.

Sales slumped TAM 24,49 percent to 85.828 units in the quarter earlier this year, much higher than the shrinking 14,05 percent in sales of national cars 282.345 units.

Export makes almost half of the total output of TMMIN is currently. Make further said that his company was studying the possibility of selling the new model abroad and at the same time develop new foreign markets, which currently relies on the Middle East.

Future potential, he added, may be located in countries of Southeast Asia: Cambodia, CMLV Myanmar, Laos and Viet Nam, which is the same as the combined market of Indonesia domestic market of 250 million people.

"This is a potential market to explore. We can still rely on the small sedan and MPV in there, "said Made.

TMMIN now operate four factories in Sunter, North Jakarta, and Karawang, West Java, to produce engines and cars with a production capacity of each unit and 250,000 195.000 vehicles every year.

In contrast to sales, the export of CBU units completely knocked-down-retrieved only slightly by 1.67 percent to 9.740 units, while shipments of machinery down 10,96 percent to 11.118 units.

Source : http://www.thejakartapost.com