CHENNAI (CU)_In the second quarter of this year, Ashok Leyland saw its losses narrow down by ₹1.07 billion, from a year earlier, and the Chennai-based automaker has expressed hopes for a sharp pick-up in demand as many countries across the globe begin to resume their economic activities.
Last week, the company revealed that in the month of June, its quarterly losses amounted to ₹2.82 billion (US$37.98 million), a sharp decline from a net loss of ₹3.89 billion reported in the June quarter of 2020. In the three months ended June this year, the multinational carmaker also saw a significant growth in sales volumes of domestic Medium and Heavy Commercial Vehicles (MHCVs) and Light Commercial Vehicles (LCVs).
Accordingly, the company now plans expand its operations into the African and Southeast Asian markets, with the aim of strengthening its international presence. “We are definitely looking to expand into Africa,” the company’s CFO Gopal Mahadevan said during a post-earnings virtual media conference on Friday (13 August). “The African market is going through a churn but we are also now looking at appointing much large dealers there who can make inroads into the market instead of doing it ourselves. That is a change that we are going to make in our strategy.”
He further noted that the Chennai-based automaker is looking at selected markets in the Southeast Asian region as part of its international expansion plans. “These are the markets very close to us in terms of fit and finish and vehicle performance. These are, in a way, very high level opportunities that we see on the international side,” he said.
Currently, Ashok Leyland’s overseas operations are being carried out in Nepal, Bangladesh and the Middle East. The company says it is “reasonably positive” that second half of this year would be much better in comparison to the first quarter when lockdowns were imposed for around 45-50 days, resulting in lower volumes.
