Currency instability to affect Honda<\/p>\n
TOKYO (AFP): Japan's Honda Motor Co. Ltd. said yesterday
\ncurrency instability in Southeast Asia would have an impact on
\nits earnings this year, biting into its automobile and motorcycle
\nbusiness there.<\/p>\n
\"Instability of South Asian currencies will have a certain
\nimpact on our earnings,\" Honda director Satoshi Aoki told a news
\nconference as he announced the company's quarterly earnings.<\/p>\n
\"But as the impact is expected to be limited, we hope to
\nabsorb such losses,\" Aoki said.<\/p>\n
Honda said its group pre-tax profit jumped 42.0 percent from a
\nyear earlier to 108.0 billion yen (US$947 million) in the three
\nmonths to June.<\/p>\n
Consolidated sales rose 15.3 percent to a June-quarter high of
\n1,418.7 billion yen, \"due primarily to favorable sales of
\nautomobiles, in particular higher sales in North America and
\nEurope,\" the car maker said.<\/p>\n
\"In addition to an increase in revenue, the company's
\ncontinued cost cutting efforts and the depreciation of the yen
\npositively affected the company's operating income,\" it said in a
\nstatement.<\/p>\n
For the year to March, Honda kept its forecast of consolidated
\npre-tax profit at 390.7 billion yen on sales of 5,293.3 billion
\nyen.<\/p>\n
But Aoki said the company cut its car sales forecast for
\nThailand from 50, 000 to 45,000 units for 1997 due to the
\nnegative impact of the July 2 baht devaluation in Thailand.<\/p>\n
The company also downgraded its motorcycle sales forecast from
\nabout 640, 000 units expected earlier to 560,000 units. In 1996,
\nHonda sold 42,000 cars in Thailand and 640,000 motorcycles.<\/p>\n
The official said the currency problems in Thailand and other
\nSoutheast Asian countries would have \"almost no impact\" on
\nearnings as a whole.<\/p>\n
\"Given our small share of the Thai auto market, with our
\ncurrent annual output of around 50,000 units, the impact will be
\nvery small,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"Any negative impact on Asian sales can be offset by firm auto
\ndemand in Indonesia and Brazil,\" the official said.<\/p>\n
Honda's production in Thailand accounts for two percent of its
\ntotal worldwide car production.<\/p>\n
Honda said overall motor vehicle sales for the three months to
\nJune rose 11.3 percent from a year earlier to 573,000 units, with
\nexports surging 16.5 percent to 388,000 units. Domestic sales
\nrose 1.6 percent to 185,000 units.<\/p>\n
Revenue from the motor vehicle sales 13.8 percent to 1,111.4
\nbillion yen.<\/p>\n
Motorcycle sales slipped 0.5 percent to 1.3 million units,
\nwith revenue here rising 16.5 percent to 200.6 billion yen.<\/p>\n
\"Motorcycle sales declined in Asia outside Japan, in
\nparticular in Thailand and China, which were offset, in part, by
\nimproved sales in Europe and Latin America,\" Honda said in the
\nstatement.<\/p>\n
Revenue from other businesses, including power unit sales,
\ngrew 30.9 percent to 106.6 billion yen, it said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/currency-instability-to-affect-honda-1447893297",
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