Honda Motor Co will soon set up shop in Taiwan, ending a 41-year partnership with Taiwan motorcycle-maker Sanyang Industrial Co (
Japan's second-largest automaker will initially spend NT$170 million to set up the subsidiary with operations beginning in March, said Satoshi Toshida (土志田諭), managing director of Honda, at a press conference yesterday in Taipei.
Honda has recently submitted an application to the government to establish the new company, called Honda Taiwan Co.
Toshida declined to spell out the reason for the break-up, saying only that the new firm will "reduce production costs" and "increase competitiveness."
The new entity will primarily manage Honda's motorcycle and automobile sales, after-sales services and spare-parts supply in Taiwan.
"At the same time, it is very important for Honda to devote itself further to building its brand image in Taiwan, both in its motorcycle and automobile businesses," Toshida said.
The Japanese executive, however, didn't elaborate on whether Honda will set up a manufacturing site or seek another local manufacturing partner, saying it will import cars and motorbikes from Japan and other areas during the initial period.
Since 1961 Honda has been working with Sanyang in making and marketing the Japanese brand of motorcycles and cars -- including the popular Accord and Civic models -- in Taiwan. But in recent years, the Taiwanese company has become a well-known motorcycle maker and a competitor to Honda.
Admitting that its partnership with Honda had broken up, San-yang said it will announce possible partners by the end of this month, said company spokesman Yeh Feng-ming (
"We began searching for a new partner in the middle of last year. With 40 years in this line of business, we have no intention to exit the market," Yeh said.
Yeh added that Honda's decision to end the partnership is in line with its global business strategy.
"Honda wants to establish a concrete organization worldwide with the appropriate resources; therefore they wanted to have direct control of Taiwan retail operations," Yeh said.
"We refused the offer," he added. Currently Honda holds a 12.52 percent stake in Sanyang.
But an industry source told the Taipei Times that Honda was aiming to take more control of Sanyang's board in order to help stem a slide in Taiwan sales as rivals expand imports following the nation's admission to the WTO on Jan. 1.
Honda's sales in Taiwan fell 44 percent last year to about 20,000 units, according to Honda.
"Honda will be experiencing short-term pain due to the lack of a domestic sales network. But since Honda is a strong and respected brand, we don't think the problem will be prolonged," said Yang Hsiang-chuan (
But there's not going to be a significant impact on Taiwan's import car market as Honda cars made up less than 1.5 percent of total number of cars sold last year, Yang added.
Taiwan's automobile market contracted a sharp 17.4 percent last year, with about 347,000 cars being sold, down from more than 400,000 in the previous year. Meanwhile, the market for import cars in Taiwan shrank by 11.5 percent last year, though cars imported from Europe and Japan fared better than cars imported from the US and Korea, local media reported last week.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College