2020-11-24
Kawasaki Heavy Industries said it will spin off its motorcycle and engine business in April 2021. The business is the only B2C business in KHI. By spinning off the business, the company aims to speed up decision-making and offer new products and services for consumers.
Makita, a major power tool company, will discontinue the production of engine products such as engine mowers, engine chainsaws, and other engine products for garden equipment at the end of March 2022. The company will concentrate its resources on its mainstay rechargeable power tools and garden equipment, for which demand is expected to increase in the future. Annual sales of engine products account for less than 2% of the total.
Source: The Nikkei
PSR Analysis: I visited Makita’s booth at the Agri Week exhibition in October. Engine models were not on exhibit and had been removed from their catalog. HIKOKI had the same situation. I forecast that battery models will account for more than 95% of the total hand tool market in 2021.
This is a sign that battery models have evolved to a level comparable to engine models, even in the power-demanding products. The engine model has a better ability in terms of long hours of continuous operation, but this is not a reason to extend the life of the engine model. Long working hours can be done by simply replacing the batteries. The fact that these batteries can be shared across a wide range of products, from chainsaws to impact drivers, has prompted the company to seek user understanding by introducing sales methods that offer lower unit prices when multiple batteries are purchased at once. PSR
Akihiro Komuro is a Research Analyst, Far East and Southeast Asia for Power Systems Research
2020-09-28
Vietnamese automaker VinFast has launched a luxury SUV, the VinFast President, to take on global brands like Lexus and Mercedes. To cost VND4.6 billion ($198,200), the seven-seater looks similar to VinFast’s first SUV, the Lux SA2.0, but with more advanced technologies and frills like massage and heated seats.
Its 420HP V8 engine can go from zero to 100 kilometers per hour in 6.8 seconds and offers a top speed of nearly 300 kph. VinFast will produce only 500 units and sell them exclusively in Vietnam. The first 100 customers will get a 17% discount on the price.
In its segment, the VinFast President costs 45% less than the Lexus LX 570 and 33% less than the BMW X7. Industry insiders say it lacks some premium features often seen in luxury cars such as captain’s chairs, TV screens and a high-end sound system. The vehicle signifies the ambition of VinFast, a unit of Vietnam’s largest conglomerate, Vingroup, to enter all segments of the auto market after bringing out its first vehicle in July last year.
2020-09-27
A month ago, the first self-driving bus operations begun its three-month trial in the southern Taiwanese city of Tainan. It is the first revenue-generating service of autonomous rapid transit (ART) project supported by the central and local governments. The goal is to launch commercial operation across the country in 2021.
“Autonomous technology will lead a revolutionary change to the city’s transportation systems,” said Huang Wei-Cher, Mayor of Tainan. “The smart transportation initiative will help us improve overall road safety, operational efficiency, and rural area transportation services.”
The service will cover two business districts. One service will run on weekends only, on a 2.5km route between Nanke Railway Station and National Museum of Prehistory, while the other will be on weekdays in the 6.4km route along Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City, where a smart vehicle testing site is located.
2020-08-23
The prices of used construction equipment continue to fall, and bidding prices at major auctions are 10% lower than in the same period last year. This is due to a decrease in demand from Southeast Asia due to the COVID-19.
Demand in Japan is steady due to the torrential rains in Kyushu and other factors, but the price decline in overseas markets has lowered the overall market.
Demand in the Philippines and Thailand also declined. In Southeast Asia, demand for cranes and other infrastructure-related equipment has been high for the past few years, but there have been several construction delays and stoppages caused by COVID-19. The average unit price at the crane truck auction was about 6 million yen, a 20% drop from January to March before COVID-19.
To continue to promote the deployment of electric vehicles in Taiwan, Taiwan Audi officially entered the pure electric vehicle market at the end of 2019 and launched the “E-tron Future” reservation project.
To meet the pure electric future, Taiwan Audi has joined hands with strategic partner Noodoe to accelerate the deployment of Taiwan’s charging network. Evaluating home charging station installation and a cloud-based charging operating system paired with Taiwan Audi’s charging solution aims to realize a pure electric mobile life.
From north to south, Taiwan spans only about 500 kilometers. At the same time, the main population centers are concentrated in the seven largest metropolitan areas. These cities–while clearly defined–are connected by a comprehensive road network that provides excellent advantages in the development of electric vehicles. Audi has been actively promoting the deployment of electric vehicles in Taiwan since last year. It is expected to introduce the first electric vehicle model ─ Audi e-tron – before the end of 2020 with a battery life of 417 kilometers (WLTP). Through the 150kW fast charge mode, it can be charged in 30 minutes to 80% power.
By August 12, after 20 days of product launch, SGMW’s MINI EV will hit a sales record of 15,000 vehicles, making it the world’s fastest car model reaching the threshold of 10,000 units.
Source: D1 EV Read The Article
PSR Analysis: Consider BYD’s electric bus, SGMW’s MINI EV, as well as premium car brands like Tesla: These traditional and emerging automotive OEMs are reformulating rules of the auto game, with their own proprietary technology.
As a matter of fact, it’s not just the automotive market that needs to brace for the impact of electrification, the off-road market also is trending toward electrification. The changing markets include passenger car, light commercial vehicle, medium and heavy duty vehicle, forklift, and lawn mower. Will this wave continue to expand to other off-road applications? How much more will it change the rules of the game? PSR
Qin Fen is Business Development Manager for Power Systems Research
2020-08-16
To continue to promote the deployment of electric vehicles in Taiwan, Taiwan Audi officially entered the pure electric vehicle market at the end of 2019 and launched the “E-tron Future” reservation project.
To meet the pure electric future, Taiwan Audi has joined hands with strategic partner Noodoe to accelerate the deployment of Taiwan’s charging network. Evaluating home charging station installation and a cloud-based charging operating system paired with Taiwan Audi’s charging solution aims to realize a pure electric mobile life.
From north to south, Taiwan spans only about 500 kilometers. At the same time, the main population centers are concentrated in the seven largest metropolitan areas. These cities–while clearly defined–are connected by a comprehensive road network that provides excellent advantages in the development of electric vehicles.
2020-07-26
Grab and GOJEK, the two strongest Southeast Asian ride-hiring services, will focus their resources on their ancestral businesses of car dispatch, delivery and payment. Due to the impact of the new coronavirus, both companies have decided to reduce their workforce for the first time since their founding about 10 years ago and are withdrawing from their non-core businesses.
The “Super-app” concept, which provides a full range of lifestyle-related services, was forced to be reviewed.
Grab and GOJEK announced in succession in June that they would be laying off 5% (360 employees) and 9% (430 employees), respectively.
Since February, the business environment has changed dramatically with the COVID-19. The use of the service has plummeted due to restrictions on behavior by governments.
2020-06-12
The Southeast Asian auto industry continues to suffer from the effects of the new coronavirus. New car sales in April were down 80% year-on-year due to restrictions on activity in each country. New car sales in the six major countries were down 82% in April from a year earlier to 51,063 units.
The biggest declines were in Malaysia and the Philippines, where sales were down 99.7% and 99.5%. Both countries began restricting activity in March, with production and sales of cars almost completely halted in April. Indonesia, the largest market, was down 91%. Thailand sales slumped 65%, although car dealerships operated under a declared state of emergency.
World Headquarters
St. Paul, MN USA
Detroit Regional Sales
Ann Arbor, MI USA
Campinas, Brazil
