Car sales in the so-called BRIC markets of Brazil, Russia, India and China will grow from 19m units last year to 27m units in 2014, according to a study by the Boston Consulting Group with General Motors and Volkswagen in the best position to take advantage of that growth because they are already well-established there.
“Auto companies cannot succeed in these markets by offering one-size-fits-all products, processes, or approaches,” said Nikolaus Lang, the study’s author.
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The four emerging markets will challenge automakers’ strategies over the past decade to push for global vehicle platforms because each country has different needs, the study said.
Auto sales in those four countries would grow between 4m and 8m units in the next five years to reach up to 27m units in 2014, when global auto sales are projected at 78-87m, up from an estimated 62m last year.
China, which overtook the US as the world’s biggest market in 2009, will account for more than 60% of the expected sales volume in the countries, the study said.
GM and VW are the biggest players in China, where sales jumped 48% last year. “They (GM and Volkswagen) really went there and established local operations,” Lang said.
He added latecomers would find it more challenging than before to make a profit in the increasingly competitive market.
