Riding high with recent success formula of Pulsar and Discover, Bajaj auto has an ambition to reap nearly 70% sales from the overseas markets. This move is viewed as a counter against Honda Motor, particularly in Latin America, Asia and Africa. It is to be remembered that Bajaj secured 30% sale in overseas markets last year and the chairman Rajiv Bajaj is quite optimistic that, irrespective of the time factor, his company is sure to reap this level. The company is too willing to have local partner in this regard even to increase the sale to three times than 30%. The probable concerns are KTM Power Sports AG and Kawasaki Heavy Industries, in bid to wrest the market share from the giant Honda and Chinese players.
Bajaj, like the telecom provider Bharti Airtel, is aiming to penetrate the markets in Nigeria, Indonesia and Brazil where the potential is high for two
wheelers and mobile industries. Bajaj’s initiative against Chinese brands is taken as an intelligent move since it has the efficiency to thwart their growth. But Bajaj has to muscle out a lot against Honda which is known for its perfect network and prospective market strategies. In the domestic share index, Bajaj is facing a tussle, a dip by 1.2% thereby making it Rs2,409.65 in Mumbai. Bajaj has seen a good season in its sale, a thumping 2.8 million vehicles during the FY2009-10. With this sprint, it foresees a mark of 5 million during the next two years. Honda’s record in two wheelers is far fetched- a sale of 9.63 million motorcycles which comprises sale of the country’s top most brand Hero Honda, in which Honda’s share is 26%.