Industry Developments

The South African unit of Japanese truck maker UD Trucks has highlighted the risk of rail freight growth to heavy truck sales, which enjoyed growth of 35% year-on-year (y-o-y) to 26,149... 2012-02-03

Premium carmaker Bentley Motors has announced investment in its Middle East operations, which posted growth of 3% in 2011. The US$9mn investment will be used to increase the brand's... 2012-02-01

Zimbabwe remains one of the less attractive auto markets within Sub-Saharan Africa at the present time, reflecting the still-difficult economic and political backdrop within the country.... 2012-01-31

BMI View: Regardless of short-term risks related to slowing macroeconomic and credit growth, we continue to forecast strong average growth of 7.3% per annum in the Mozambican automotive... 2012-01-30

Egypt's autos industry remains in the doldrums, with demand for new vehicles remaining depressed by a combination of both economic and political strife. According to figures from Egypt's... 2012-01-27

The aim of BMI's Industry Risk/Reward Ratings system for the automotive industry is to show the rewards and the risks that carmakers operating in a particular region - in this case... 2012-01-26

Qatar Automotive Gateway (Qatar AG), which aims to be a leading automotive components hub by 2020, has signalled its premium-oriented intentions through a partnership with UK-based... 2012-01-25

Sales of new vehicles in Saudi Arabia have shown steady growth since the slump precipitated by the 2009 financial crisis. BMI estimates that 2011 will have seen a 7.0% year-on-year... 2012-01-20

In BMI's newly-compiled Risk/Reward Ratings for the Autos sector in the sub-Saharan African region, South Africa and Nigeria are currently our most favoured countries, with Tanzania... 2012-01-19

Germany's Volkswagen (VW) has reported growth of 70% year-on-year for its namesake brand in Saudi Arabia in 2011, which is a firm endorsement of BMI's view on the growing acceptance... 2012-01-18