No price discounting from Ford?
Local manufacturer is looking for efficiencies to combat lower-priced imports entering the marketMazda has already announced lower prices, ahead of the reduced tariff applying to imported passenger cars from January 1, next year. Subaru, on the other hand, will not be reducing prices of its imported product range.
Ford President Marin Burela (pictured), asked today during the monthly sales briefing how the local manufacturer planned to cope with lower-priced competition from next year, outlined a plan to add value to its Aussie-built product range.
"We haven't been sitting idle for the last 12 months, waiting for tariffs to drop by five per cent on January 1. We have been working very diligently across our total organisation, with our suppliers, with our manufacturing teams, with our distribution network -- to find efficiency opportunities, to be able to offset some of those tariff changes we're going to see.
"It's very much a work in progress.
"We're adding more value to our cars, creating a greater level of desirability and appeal, even though we know that our business is going to be significantly tougher, as we move towards 2010."
Burela remained confident in the government's trade mission to China and cooperation with the trade unions, but called for the industry to sit back and assess whether the import tariff should be reduced below the five-per cent mark subsequently.
"Although it's hard... With the right leadership and the right attention to detail, we can continue to carve out a business for ourselves that will be viable."
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