General Motors Company
(
GM
) plans to expand its dealerships in Indonesia and Thailand in
order to tap growth opportunities in the two markets with rising
income levels. The company's head of Southeast Asian operations,
Martin Apfel, revealed that the company plans to increase the
number of dealerships to 55 from 35 in Indonesia and to 120 from
91 Thailand by the end of 2013.
The Detroit-based automaker intends to make up for the sluggish
sales in other markets including the U.S. and Europe, by
expanding its operations and opening up manufacturing bases in
the two countries.
GM quit the Indonesian market in 2005 by closing a small assembly
plant in Bekasi city, located in West Java on the eastern border
of Jakarta due to a financial crunch. However, the automaker
reactivated the plant in 2011 in order to strengthen its position
in the market dominated by Japanese automakers.
GM anticipates nearly five-fold increase in sales in Indonesia by
2014 as its Bekasi plant would be geared up to produce about
50,000 vehicles annually. For now, the company plans to
manufacture a seven-seat multipurpose vehicle (MPV) Chevrolet
Spin at the plant, aimed at both the local market and other
markets in Southeast Asia such as Thailand and the Philippines.
Last year, GM's Chevrolet brand sales in Indonesia jumped 72%;
however, it occupied less than 1% of the market. Meanwhile, the
company's Chevrolet sales in Thailand more than tripled to 59,652
vehicles in the first 10 months of the year, led by Colorado
pickup truck.
GM's cross-town rival,
Ford Motor Co.
(
F
) is also pursuing a major expansion plan in Asia, including
China, India and Thailand. The company expects that the continent
will account for 70% of its global growth in the next decade,
mostly from China and India. It also anticipates Asian sales
volumes to double and account for a third of its global sales by
2020.
GM, a Zacks #3 Rank (Hold) stock, posted a 9.7% fall in earnings
to 93 cents per share (excluding special items) in the third
quarter of the year from $1.03 in the corresponding quarter a
year ago. However, earnings per share in the quarter far exceeded
the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 61 cents.
Revenues in the quarter grew 2.5% to $37.6 billion, surpassing
the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $36.3 billion. Worldwide sales
volume inched up 1.6% to 2.3 million units from 2.2 million units
a year ago. However, total market share declined to 11.6% from
12.1% in the third quarter of 2011.
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