March 13, 2006 – Brazil grows cycle production, exports

Brazil’s four main motorcycle manufacturers sold a record 1.21 million two-wheelers in 2005, a growth of 14.8 percent compared to sales of 1.05 million units in 2004.
An estimated 186.1 million people live in Brazil, which has an area slightly smaller than the United States. The recently released production and sales figures make the South American country the fifth largest motorcycle market in the world.
Brazil’s domestic market experienced sales of 1.02 million units in 2005, up 12.3 percent from 911,717 units sold domestically in 2004, according to figures compiled by the Brazilian Association of the Manufacturers of Motorcycles, Mopeds, Motonetas, Bicycles and Similars (Abraciclo).
The four leading producers of motorized two-wheelers in Brazil are Honda, Kasinski, Sundown and Yamaha. Honda offered consumers 22 different models in 2005 and produced 981,590 units, Kasinski offered 10 models and produced 5,227 units, Sundown offered four models and produced 36,505 units, and Yamaha offered 13 models and produced 1,213,517 units.
Of the four manufacturers, only Honda and Yamaha export product for sale in other countries. Abraciclo said Honda and Yamaha exported 184,592 units in 2005, 17.3 percent more units than the 157,400 vehicles exported in 2004.
2006
Abraciclo expects motorcycle production in 2006 to rise 6 percent to approximately 1.335 million units. The organization said it expects the domestic market to flirt with sales of 1.16 million units. The export market, it said, may account for approximately 175,000 units, down 6 percent from the 184,592 units exported in 2005.
In January, the four manufacturers produced 102,177 two-wheelers, up from 86,884 units produced in January 2005. Domestic sales numbered 86,884 units, up from 65,228 units sold in January 2005, while exports totaled 13,388 units, up from 11,744 units exported in January 2005.
Honda claims approximately 90 percent of Brazil’s domestic motorcycle market. Established in 1975, Moto Honda da Amazonia Ltda. is the powersports division of Honda South America Ltda., a unit of Japan’s Honda Motor Co. Ltd. established in 2000 to oversee Honda operations in all of South America. Honda Motor Co. has a network of 17 businesses in Brazil.
Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd. first entered Brazil in 1970. The company’s operations there include Yamaha Motor Da Amazonia Ltda., a manufacturer and marketer of motorcycles and outboard motors, and Yamaha Motor Do Brasil Ltda., manufacturer of motorcycle parts and marketer of motorcycles, outboard motors, ATVs and generators.
A producer of product licensed from Korea’s Hyosung Motors and Machinery, Kasinski Motorcycle was founded in 1999, when 82-year-old Abraham Kasinsky bought a motorcycle factory in Brazil from Hyosung for $20 million. Before getting into the motorcycle business, Kasinsky had been running Cofap, Brazil’s largest provider of automobile spare parts.
With annual sales of approximately $70 million, Companhia Brasileira de Bicicletas (CBB) owns Sundown Motos. In late 2005, Sundown Motos invested $2.3 million in the construction of a new plant capable of producing 50,000 units annually.
“Our industry is producing almost within its maximum capacity, and the companies are attempting to make adjustments for increased output,” said Pablo S. Takeuchi, president of the Abraciclo. psb