(AME Info (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) May 03--EGYPT CAR SALES UP 33 percent IN Q1: According to data from Egypt's Automotive Marketing Information Council (AMIC), automobile sales in the country continued their recovery in the first quarter of 2012, with purchase figures up 33.4 percent on the same period the year before, Ahram has reported. A total of 43,247 automobiles have been sold in the first three months of this year, the data showed. Last April saw 17,213 automobiles sold, with passenger cars accounting for 12,519 units of this total, the report said.
JAGUAR SALES UP 20 percent IN MENA REGION: Jaguar Land Rover has said the sales of its Jaguar vehicles in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region rose 20 percent, making the region the brand's fifth largest market globally. Sales for its luxury SUV brand, Land Rover, in the Mena region were up 40 percent on the previous year. Notable market performers in the region included North Africa, where sales of the Land Rover LR2 more than doubled year on year, and Iraq, which experienced strong growth in its first full year of operation. The brand also posted healthy sales in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar. Sales of its luxury sports car, the Jaguar XK jumped 38 percent year-on-year, while the Jaguar XF registered a 6 percent year-on-year increase, the company said.
SSANGYONG TO LAUNCH NEW CHAIRMAN CAR IN SAUDI ARABIA: Al Dabbous Auto Co, the sole dealer of South Korean automaker, Ssangyong in Saudi Arabia has announced the launch of the new Chairman model in the kingdom, as well as three new showrooms in Riyadh, Dammam, and Jeddah, Arab News has reported. Ssangyong's new Chairman is available in CW700 and CW700L models. Both models are equipped with a 6-cylinder 3.6-litre engine delivering 250bhp and mated to a 7-speed tiptronic automatic transmission box.
CHRYSLER HAS BEST PROFIT QUARTER IN OVER 3 YEARS: Chrysler has reported its best quarterly profit in 13 years, the Associated Press has reported. The company earned $473m in the first quarter, mainly from strong US sales, which rose 39 percent from January until March. The profit was more than four times what Chrysler made a year earlier, and it was the best performance since the third quarter of 1998 when Chrysler earned $682m during the pick-up truck and SUV boom.
FORD POSTS LOWER EARNINGS, MARRED BY EUROPE SALES: Ford Motor Co, the second-largest US automaker, has reported a lower quarterly profit, hurt by weak international results, particularly in Europe, and a higher tax rate, Reuters has reported. Net income for the first quarter fell to $1.4bn, down from the $2.6bn net income the company reported a year earlier, Ford said, adding that nearly half that drop was due to higher tax expenses.
VOLKSWAGEN REPORTS 86 percent RISE IN NET INCOME: Europe's biggest car maker, Volkswagen has reported a rise in profits in the first three months of this year, driven by strong demand worldwide for all of its brands, AFP has reported. Net income surged 86 percent to E3.186bn in the period from January to March from a year earlier, VW said. The auto giant said its sales grew 11.3 percent to 2.26 million cars worldwide in the three-month period.
AL FUTTAIM TO BRING FISKER HYBRID CARS TO GCC: Dubai's Al Futtaim Motors has signed a distributorship deal with US-based hybrid cars maker, Fisker Automotive for the GCC region, Gulf News has reported. The formal launch date of the plug-in hybrids has been set to coincide with the Abu Dhabi Motor Show in late November, with the first dedicated Fisker showroom at Dubai Festival City to be ready by the fourth quarter, the firm said.
MERCEDES-BENZ UNVEIL REDESIGNED M-CLASS IN OMAN: Zawawi Trading Co (ZTC), the sole distributor for Mercedes-Benz in Oman, has unveiled the redesigned new M-Class luxury SUV in the Sultanate. Available in ML 350 and ML 500 variants, the new M-Class features AMG sports styling as standard, three potent engine options, and high-quality luxury interiors. The powertrain options include a new generation of BlueEfficiency petrol engines offer 306bhp and 408bhp, respectively. A high performance 250km/h (electronically limited) ML 63 AMG variant is also available on the new M-Class. The AMG 5.5 litre V8 bi-turbo engine produces 525bhp and 700nm of torque pushing the ML 63 AMG from 0-100km/h in 4.8 seconds.
PEUGEOT CITROEN MAY PARTNER WITH GM FOR INDIA CAR PRODUCTION: French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen, in collaboration with global alliance partner General Motors, has said it may build cars in India, effectively scrapping a planned E650m investment in its own factory, Reuters has reported. The companies will explore ways to use GM plants to support Peugeot's long-heralded return to the Indian market, said Gregoire Olivier, head of Asian operations for the Paris-based automaker. "We now have GM as a global partner, and GM has factories in India, so we're obviously reviewing our plans from the top," he said. "There are a lot of other ways to enter India now that they don't require us to put E600m on the table."
GENERAL MOTORS REPORTS 39 percent SALES JUMP IN SAUDI ARABIA: General Motors (GM) has reported record sales figures in Saudi Arabia during the first quarter of 2012, Saudi Gazette has reported. GM's luxury brand, Cadillac increased sales by 63 percent during the first quarter, driven by sales of the new SRX (up 139 percent), the CTS (up 76 percent) and the country's most popular full-size luxury SUV, the Cadillac Escalade (up 78 percent). GMC also said its sales surge by 52 percent due to growing demand for its popular line-up of crossovers, SUVs and pickups, while Chevrolet registered a 29 percent sales uplift driven by sales of its passenger cars and crossovers.
HYUNDAI MIDDLE EAST ANNOUNCES REDESIGNED GENESIS COUPE: Hyundai Motor Middle East has unveiled the redesigned 2013 Genesis Coupe, which made its international debut in Detroit at the North American International Auto Show earlier this year. The Genesis Coupe is available with two engine options. The 3.8-litre Lambda DOHC V6 engine and the 2.0-litre turbocharged engine are both available with a 6-speed manual transmission or 8-speed automatic transmission with paddle-shift Shiftronic manual-shifting capability. Both 4-cylinder and V6 engines boast from significant technology enhancements, with the 3.8-litre V6 engine receiving sophisticated direct-injection technology, and the 2.0-litre turbocharged engine upgrading to a more precise twin-scroll turbocharger and larger intercooler.
LAMBORGHINI UNVEILS FIRST SUV IN TWO DECADES: THE URUS: Lamborghini has unveiled its first sport-utility vehicle in almost two decades, as the Italian supercar maker looks to expand its line-up to tap rising demand from emerging markets, Bloomberg has reported. The concept SUV, called the Urus, was unveiled in Beijing before this week's auto show in the Chinese capital. Lamborghini sees potential sales of 3,000 vehicles a year for the SUV, CEO Stephan Winkelmann said. A final decision to produce the vehicle hasn't been made, he said.
FORD'S SALES JUMP 37 percent IN GCC IN Q1: US carmaker Ford has reported a 37 percent growth in GCC retail sales during the first quarter of 2012, compared with the same period last year, Kuwait Times has reported. The rise in retail sales was seen across passenger cars, which grew by more than 25 percent, as well as the utility vehicles range, which registered a 50 percent growth, with the main performers being Ford Fusion, Taurus, as well as the Ford Edge, Escape, Explorer, Expedition and F-150.
BMW AND MINI SEES 8 percent SALES INCREASE IN SAUDI ARABIA: Mohamed Yousuf Naghi Motors, the sole importer of BMW and MINI cars in Saudi Arabia, has reported an 8 percent increase in BMW and MINI car sales in the first three months of 2012 compared with the same period in 2011, Saudi Gazette has reported. The flagship BMW 7 Series was the highest volume selling model, followed by the BMW 5 Series, the BMW X6 Sports Activity Coupe and the BMW X5 Sports Activity Vehicle, the firm said.
ABU DHABI INVESTMENT FUND TO EXIT DAIMLER: German media reports have said Abu Dhabi's investment fund Aabar is preparing to exit its investment in Daimler, Reuters has reported. The fund is currently discussing ways of disposing of its remaining stake after having cut its holding to 3 percent from 9 percent, the reports said, citing company sources.
NEW NISSAN MICRA 2012 UNVEILED IN OMAN : Suhail Bahwan Automobiles (SBA), the exclusive importer and distributor of Nissan vehicles in Oman, has unveiled the all-new Nissan Micra, Oman Daily Observer has reported. Equipped with a four-cylinder, 1.5-litre engine, the new Micra is available in 5 trim grades with features such as the Nissan intelligent key with push engine start, climate-control air-conditioning, reversing sensors, 15-inch alloy wheels and front fog lights.
BENTLEY TO LAUNCH V8 CONTINENTAL GT IN OMAN: British luxury automaker, Bentley Motors has said Oman has been selected to launch the company's new 4-litre twin turbocharged Bentley Continental GT V8 coupe variant this month, Muscat Daily has reported. The new Bentley V8 engine will deliver a maximum power of 500bhp at 6,000rpm and a peak torque of 660Nm, and coupled with the new close-ratio eight-speed automatic transmission, the new Continental will achieve a sub-five second acceleration time for the 0-100 km/h sprint and a top speed of over 290km/h.
BAHRAIN SEES SLIGHT DIP IN NEW CAR IMPORTS: Official figures indicate the number of new cars imported into Bahrain reached 23,325 in 2011, Gulf News has reported. The number is 0.7 percent lower than the 23,487 cars given road permits in 2010. The decrease was attributed to the period of unrest in the country, the insufficient provision of personal funds by several banks concerned about developments and the re-arrangement of people's priorities during difficult times.
HYUNDAI TO SECURE TECHNOLOGIES FOR ELECTRONIC CONTROLS: South Korean carmaker, Hyundai Motor Group has set up an electronic control systems company named, which will design electronic control software and semiconductors, The Korea Herald has reported. Hyundai Autron aims to secure its own technologies for designing automotive electric and electronic systems, non-memory semiconductors, software, electromagnetic controllers and telecommunication standardisation. Through cooperation with affiliates such as Hyundai Mobis and Kefico, Hyundai Autron will seek to supply top-notch automotive electronic control systems, the group said. Korean carmakers have so far depended on imports for electronic control systems and automotive semiconductors.
NEW CAYENNE GTS TO GO ON SALE IN DOHA IN AUGUST: Porsche Centre Doha has announced the has started accepting orders for the new Cayenne GTS, Gulf Times has reported. The second generation of the Cayenne GTS boasts a more powerful engine, more dynamic power development, a tougher chassis with lower ride height and sporty equipment. The Cayenne GTS is equipped with a 420bhp uprated V8 engine, based on the Cayenne S power unit, coupled to an eight-speed Tiptronic S with integrated auto start/stop function. The first deliveries are to start in August this year, the firm said.
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