India has become Honda’s largest two-wheeler market in the world, surpassing Indonesia and Vietnam in the past two months, Keita Muramatsu, president & CEO of Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI), said.
?We have been growing very fast and right now demand is higher than we can produce. Within a few years we have moved from the fourth position in India’s two- wheeler industry to the second. This year, we will have a launch every quarter,? Muramatsu said, adding that a 160cc bike will be introduced in October-December this year to challenge the Bajaj Pulsar and the TVS Apache.
HMSI currently has a 4.5- million-unit annual capacity across three plants in Haryana, Rajasthan and Karnataka. A fourth plant in Gujarat is scheduled to start production in 2017, adding a further 1.2-million-unit capacity. Study for a fifth plant will also start this year.
YS Guleria, VP for sales & marketing, said, ?We have expanded our range in the mass 100-110 cc bike segment with the Dream range and while the segment’s share in total two-wheeler sales has fallen from 49% in 2012 to 47%, our sales have grown. But the rural market is challenging and we are working hard.?