Bajaj Auto owns 47% in KTM Power Sports AG, an Austrian sports motorcycle company. They produce Duke 125, Duke 200, and Duke 390 at their plant in Pune. They will also start production of RC 125, RC 200 and RC 390 at the plant. These six bikes are only made at this plant, and are then exported to other markets.
Already being exported to markets in Europe, Bajaj will also export KTM bikes to China and Brazil. Now, it has emerged that Bajaj has also added US to this list. By end of 2014, KTM exports to US will also commence from Bajaj’s Pune plant, thus making Bajaj Auto first Indian auto company to export motorcycles to the US.
In FY14, KTM bikes exported from India touched 24,000 units, while sold in domestic markets touched 11,000 units. This number is expected to grow significantly once the RC Series is launched. India will soon get the KTM RC 200 and RC 390 as they are scheduled to launch on 9th September with a price range of Rs 2-2.5 lakhs.
As far as rumours of Bajaj planning a comeback in the scooter segment, this has been rubbished by the company. Bajaj officials have confirmed that they will not enter the scooter segment. Bajaj Auto Limited, India’s leading exporter of motorcycles and three wheelers, will continue to with motorcycles and exports as their prime focus.
Bajaj Auto Limited with added emphasis on their Discovery and Pulsar brands has noted increased demand in bike segment over the past few years. It is for this reason that the company has planned to concentrate more on this segment. Not only India, they also wish to enter new overseas markets in the future, apart from the existing 50 countries in which they are present already.
Bajaj Auto reported a 9% increase in motorcycle sales during July 2014. The company stated that it sold 2,67,841 motorcycles in July 2014 as against 2,46,828 units in July 2013, while sales of commercial vehicles also increased significantly by 49%. Even with no presence in scooter segment, Bajaj Auto reports the highest operating profit of 19%, as compared to Hero’s 13% and TVS’s 6% in the segment.
Source:- rushlane.com
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