Business

Pakistan’s bike production drops for first time since 2000

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

Stagnant incomes, declining agricultural growth caused slump.
Production dropped by 34% in first five months of FY22-23.
Production of other companies except Honda declined by 73%.

LAHORE: Motorcycle manufacturing and sales have continued their vigorous growth, from around 100,000 bikes in 1999-2000 to 2.6 million in 2021-22, despite recession or boom. However, 2022-23 could be the first fiscal year since 2000, when bike manufacturing will drop steeply.

Does the bike slump indicate Pakistan’s worst recession?

The drop in bike manufacturing and sales may also be due to the steep increase in the price of two-wheelers.

Since bikes are purchased and used by low-income buyers, the sales might have slowed a bit if the prices remained stable, however, at current rates and almost stagnant incomes, people are struggling to make ends meet.

Another reason for the drop might be declining agricultural productivity, as most motorbike sales in the country are accounted for in rural areas. Recent floods that affected over 34 million people are a reason for slumping sales.

Motorcycle production data is from the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA), however, many motorbike manufacturers are not registered with it, and the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) records their production data.

Most of the local bike manufacturers produce the 70cc variant, barring three Japanese manufacturers. However, there has always been a huge price difference in the retail price of the 70cc Japanese bike and the local or Chinese models.

But, the Japanese brand sales are still almost double the sales of all other brands. Currently, the market leader Japanese 70cc bike costs Rs125,000 while local 70cc variants are available at Rs80,000 to Rs85,000.

However, the statistics for last year are available that put the total motorbike production at 2.6 million.

According to data in 2021-22, the market leader produced 1.35 million motorcycles, and the rest 1.25 million units were sold by all others, including two other Japanese brands. These Japanese brands, however, produced motorbikes of 100cc or above power.

The PAMA statistics for the first five months of the current fiscal year give a true picture of the state of the bike industry in the country.

In the July-November 2022 period, the bike industry (registered with PAMA) produced 521,643 bikes against 797,346 produced during the same period of last year. This is a massive decline of 34% in the first five months of this fiscal.

To get a picture of the turmoil faced by different manufacturers, a further study of the PAMA statistics revealed that Honda produced 563,268 bikes in the first five months of the last fiscal. This year the production has declined to 435,390 a decline of over 22%.

United Auto Motorcycle is the next brand with the highest production. It produced 136,720 units from July-November 2021. This fiscal year during the same five months, the production has dropped to 38,957 bikes. This is a massive decline of over 300%.

Next comes, Road Prince Motorcycle, which produced 52,289 motorcycles in the first five months of the last fiscal. During the same period this fiscal, its production has declined to 14,540 units. This again is a huge decline witnessed in the industry.

Overall the production of all other motorcycle producers except Honda declined by 73%.

This unexpected decline in motorcycle uptake has created turmoil in the industry and thousands of workers have been laid off. Some industry experts attribute the decline in bike production to the restrictions on the import of components imposed by the government.

This may be partially true but we must recognise the fact that the buyers lack the finances to buy two-wheelers at current high rates.

Business

An investigation was “launched” into PTA’s inability to get Rs. 78 billion back from Telcos

Published

22 hours ago

Farwa

The PTA has reportedly been instructed to reply to NAB by July 29. According to the enquiry, the national exchequer has suffered losses as a result of the delay in collecting dues.

The PTA has been asked to provide NAB with information about any pertinent records, court proceedings, and overdue bills. The NAB Karachi has summoned the PTA officials to appear with all pertinent documentation.

All of the principle sum has to be paid by the LDI firms, according to sources. But due to judicial stay orders, the collection of dues has been impeded.

These sources further state that a steering group has been established by the Ministry of IT to supervise the issue of dues recovery.

In a previous event, the tariffs levied on importing cell phones from outside were clarified by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

Contrary to what some internet reports claim, PTA clarified in response to recent news regarding the tariffs on mobile phone imports that there hasn’t been a formal decision to remove these levies in Pakistan.

the PTA.Pakistanis living abroad will be the only ones free from these levies, according to the PTA. A SIM card can be inserted and the phone restarted to temporarily register a device for non-PTA mobile subscribers.

Business

Weekly inflation in Pakistan increased by 0.17 percent.

Published

22 hours ago

Farwa

The SPI for the week under review in the aforementioned group was reported at 321.95 points, as opposed to 321.40 points during the previous week, according to the PBS statistics.

The SPI for the combined consumption group saw a 20.09 percent increase in the week under review compared to the same week the previous year.

The weekly SPI includes 51 necessary items for every spending group and 17 urban areas, with a base year of 2015–16 = 100.

The SPI for the lowest consumption category, which is up to Rs 17,732, grew by 0.08 percent from 311.97 points to 312.22 points this past week.

0.18 percent,The index of consumption for the lowest consumption groups, which are Rs 17,732-22,888, Rs 22,889-29,517, Rs 29,518-44,175 and above Rs 44,175; increased by 0.13 percent, 0.15 percent, 0.18 and 0.19 percent, respectively.

Nineteen (37.25%) of the fifty-one commodities had price increases over the week, eight (15.69%) had price decreases, and twenty-four (47.06%) had unchanged pricing.

On a weekly basis, the following commodities saw significant price decreases: tomatoes (9.19%), onions (2.14%), LPG (1.04%), bananas (0.53%), wheat flour (0.35%), potatoes (0.17%), pulse masoor (0.16%), and bread (0.05%).

Chicken (4.80%), garlic (2.01%), pulse gramme (1.87%), eggs (1.71%), beef (0.93%), gur (0.89%), pulse moong (0.84%), fresh milk (0.45%), firewood (0.23%), and cigarettes (0.12%) were among the items whose average prices increased significantly week over week.

The commodities that saw a year-over-year decline were: wheat flour (31.75%); cooking oil (13.44%); vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (10.42%); vegetable ghee 1 kg (9.85%); mustard oil (8.33%); eggs (5.82%); rice basmati broken (4.15%); and tea package (2.52%).

Gas prices for Q1 (570.00%), onions (96.01%), pulse gramme (40.39%), powered milk (39.11%), garlic (34.61%), pulse moong (29.77%), men’s sandals (25.01%), beef (23.52%), salt powder (23.28%), pulse mash (22.50%), and energy saver (17.96%) were among the commodities whose average prices increased year over year.

Business

The price of gold has drastically dropped in Pakistan.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

As per the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association (APGJSA), the cost of 24-karat gold per tola decreased by Rs 2,300, standing at Rs 250,500.

A kilogramme of 24-karat gold costing Rs1,972 less at the local market, making it worth Rs2114,763. Ten grammes of 22-karat gold had a price decrease to Rs196,866 as well.

After losing a significant $43 during the day, the rate per ounce of gold on the international market also decreased. It currently stands at $2,370.

On Thursday, the price of 24-karat silver also experienced a decline, falling by Rs60 to settle at Rs2,860 petal.