Tata Daewoo working to expand truck sales

Tata Daewoo Commercial Vehicle, the Korean unit of Indian carmaker Tata Motors, said on Tuesday that it will strengthen its truck lineup in order to revive its sales performance in the Korean market.

Tata Daewoo is planning to introduce at least three light truck models to expand its market share to achieve 30 percent in the domestic light truck market over the next five years, Tata Daewoo President and Chief Executive Kim Bang-shin said during a press conference.

The trucks will weigh 2.5 tons to 3.5 tons,

“We are planning to launch our light truck models which have better quality by 10 percent and lower prices by 10 percent compared to truck products made by Hyundai Motor to penetrate into the local light truck market,” he said.’

The president said the company is also considering adding a liquefied natural gas-powered light truck to the lineup.

Currently, the country’s light truck market, in which about 10,000 units are sold per year, is dominated by Hyundai Motor.

Hyundai claims more than 90 percent of the domestic light truck market, with Japan’s Isuzu Motors and China’s Beiqi Foton Motor accounting for the remainder.

In Korea, Tata Daewoo has sold medium trucks weighing 4.5-8.5 tons and heavy trucks weighing 8-25.5 tons, competing with bigger rivals, such as Hyundai Motor.

It is also competing with imported commercial brands, such as MAN, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo Trucks, Scania and Iveco.

The country’s medium and heavy trucks markets contracted last year due to lower demand from construction companies and logistics firms, Kim said.

“Our market share in the medium and heavy truck markets fell to 22 to 23 percent from 30 percent in 2016 and 2017. We are aiming to boost sales by diversifying our truck lineup in coming years,” he said.

Tata Motors acquired a 100-percent stake in the automotive business unit of the now defunct Daewoo Group in April 2004.

It changed the name of the company to Tata Daewoo.

Yonhap