Volkswagen will resume producing cars in Kenya by the end of the year as it looks to sell more vehicles across the East African region.   After a four decade pause in production by the German carmaker in Kenya, VW will establish an assembly plant to initially produce its Vivo model, President Uhuru Kenyatta and Thomas Schafer, Volkswagen South Africa’s chief executive, said.   Emerging market production is familiar.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 13th September 2016

 NEW DELHI: Indian arm of Japanese automaker Nissan has started export of Datsun GO+ to South Africa. Produced at the Renault-Nissan Alliance plant in Oragadam near Chennai, sales of Datsun GO+ began on August 31, 2016 in South Africa.   Guillaume Sicard, President, Nissan India Operations, said "We are delighted to see the Datsun GO+, manufactured with pride at the Renault-Alliance plant in Chennai, introduced for sale in South.... Read more »

Posted on : Monday , 12th September 2016

 Car makers in South Africa signed a new three-year wage deal with militant union Numsa on Friday, industry officials said, easing concerns of a labour dispute in a key export and manufacturing industry.   South Africa's local motor industry, the largest in the continent with hubs in the capital Pretoria and Port Elizabeth, contributes 7.5 percent to GDP and around a third of the manufacturing output in Africa's most industrialised.... Read more »

Posted on : Monday , 12th September 2016

 Volkswagen has signed a deal to use the Kenya Vehicle Manufacturers in Thika to assemble its popular models beginning with the Volkswagen Vivo.   The first fully Kenya assembled Vivo is expected to roll out of the Thika plant by December this year.   Making the announcement Wednesday, President Uhuru Kenyatta said the plant will then expand into a fully fledged assembly operation producing a range of vehicle.... Read more »

Posted on : Thursday , 8th September 2016

 Local assembly of motor vehicles has received a big boost after Volkswagen South Africa signed a deal with the government, to assemble vehicles in Thika. The deal will see Volkswagen use the Kenya vehicle manufacturer’s facility in Thika to assemble popular models beginning with the Volkswagen vivo. The first fully Kenya assembled vivo is expected to roll out of the Thika plant by December this year. The return of Volkswagen is a.... Read more »

Posted on : Thursday , 8th September 2016

 The development and promotion of a cohesive automotive strategy for the African continent is gaining new impetus due to the strategic vision and guidance of the African Association of Automotive Manufacturers (AAAM).   A delegation from AAAM, led by Jeff Nemeth, Chairman of AAAM as well as President and CEO of Ford Motor Company Sub-Saharan Africa Region, is currently visiting Nigeria’s capital city, Abuja, to engage with.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 7th September 2016

 A Chinese state-owned car manufacturer agreed to build an 11 billion-rand ($759 million) auto plant in South Africa, the biggest investment in a vehicle-production facility in the country in four decades. The Beijing Automotive International Corp. plans to start production at the facility in 2018, International Chief Executive Officer Dong Haiyang told reporters in the southern coast city of Port Elizabeth on Tuesday. The plant will be.... Read more »

Posted on : Saturday , 3rd September 2016

 VEHICLE exports bounced back strongly in August after two months of treading water, reviving hopes that South African motor industry production will achieve record levels in 2016.   Local motor companies exported 35,620 cars and commercial vehicles last month, 27% more than they managed in August 2015. As a result, exports for the year to date – 232,324 – rebounded from a deficit at the end of July, to an overall.... Read more »

Posted on : Friday , 2nd September 2016

 Beijing Automotive International Corp. (BAIC), one of China's top automakers, said it will build a US$ 800 million auto plant in South Africa, the largest foreign investment in the country in four decades, as Chinese car brands look to expand overseas. The announcement comes as China's own car industry has slowed sharply in the last two years, making it bloated with excess capacity after years of explosive growth. China is the world's.... Read more »

Posted on : Friday , 2nd September 2016

French auto major Renault is looking to enhance exports from India to neighbouring countries and Africa as it seeks to make the country a manufacturing hub.    "Last month we started exporting Duster and Kwid to Sri Lanka. This month we will be entering Nepal while we also prepare to enter Bhutan," Sumit Sawhney, country CEO and managing director, Renault India Operations, told PTI.    Not only the.... Read more »

Posted on : Thursday , 1st September 2016

 Car manufacturer Toyota is well known, but Toyota Tsusho less so. We spoke to the trading subsidiary to find out more about its African operations.   Can you explain what the Toyota Tsusho division is, how it originated and its objectives?   Toyota Tsusho, established in 1948, is the sole general trading company within the Toyota Group. It has some 53,000 employees and its global network encompasses Japan, approximately 90.... Read more »

Posted on : Thursday , 1st September 2016

 FOREIGN motor companies planning to build vehicles in sub-Saharan Africa would be taking huge risks looking beyond SA, according to Jimmy Dando, regional head of sales and operations for Japanese manufacturer Nissan.   Most companies that had set up operations in other countries on the continent had been forced to either cut back drastically on planned production or mothball assembly plants, Dando said. SA, despite a fall in.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 31st August 2016