Saturday, September 8, 2007

Vietnam eyes regional motorbike hub status

The Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade seeks to develop the country into a major hub for motorbike manufacture, design, and assembly by 2015.

Under a blueprint it announced recently, the ministry aims to increase domestic motorbike output to fully meet rural demand and 90 percent of urban demand by 2015. Vietnam has, so far this year, imported motorbikes and spare parts worth US$450 million.

By 2015 the local content in scooters and motorbikes will go up respectively to 60 percent and 90 percent. Around 31 million two-wheelers would run on the country’s roads by then, the ministry said.

The industry would also be a major exporter with bikes and parts shipments worth $400 million, including components sold to international companies.
The ministry calls on the industry to boost trade promotion and tie-ups with international groups to achieve higher exports of spares.

Last year 2.1 million motorbikes were produced in the country, 1.44 million by foreign behemoths like Honda and Yamaha.

http://www.thanhniennews.com