Suzuki Motor reportedly predicted on Friday that its global car sales would rise 10% to a record 2.22m units this year, boosted by robust demand for the Swift and other compact cars abroad.
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Reuters said the solid expansion would follow a rosy 2005, when its global car sales topped the 2m mark for the first time and Suzuki remained Japan’s top seller of 660cc mini-vehicles for the 33rd straight year.
“With the exception of China, all regions have a backlog of orders for the Swift,” chief executive officer Osamu Suzuki reportedly told a news conference. “We’re going to continue growing in overseas markets,” he added.
Reuters said Suzuki expects healthy overseas sales and a weaker yen to drive it to its sixth straight year of record profits for the 12 months ending 31 March, with an operating profit of JPY108bn (GBP533m).
Consensus forecasts from 17 brokerages surveyed by Reuters Estimates put Suzuki’s 2005/06 operating profit higher at JPY114.8bn, rising to JPY122.4bn for the following year.
CEO Suzuki reportedly said capital spending would likely remain at a high level – around JPY220bn – in the business year starting in April as it adds more production capacity in Hungary and India.
For the year to 31 March, Suzuki, owned one-fifth by General Motors, and Japan’s fourth-biggest auto maker by market capitalisation, earmarked JPY280bn for capex.
With production reaching a limit at its existing 500,000 unit-a-year assembly plant in India, Suzuki is planning a second 100,000-unit factory in the fast-growing car market with unit Maruti Udyog this year, Reuters noted.
The report said Suzuki is also set to open a joint diesel engine plant in India with Fiat in May.
By region, according to the news agency, the auto maker is expecting sales in China to jump 38% to 200,000 units in 2006, European sales by 17% to 310,000 units and South Asian sales by 16% to 710,000.
It reportedly expects more modest growth in North America, to 100,000 vehicles from 90,000 last year, with some help from the SX-4 compact sport utility vehicle to be launched later this year.
Worldwide car production is forecast to rise 10% to 2.339 million vehicles, it said in a statement cited by Reuters.
Last year, global car output rose 6% to a record 2,124,584 units, while sales grew 7% to 2,010,000 units, the report added.
