Honda jacks up car prices by up to Rs100,000

Rates will again be increased in January next year

KARACHI: Citing negative impact of the falling exchange rate, Honda Atlas Cars has announced that it is compelled to increase vehicle prices from Rs50,000 to Rs100,000 with effect from October 22 this year.

The company will again raise prices in January 2019, which will take the cumulative increase to Rs210,000.

Prices of Civic variants have been increased by Rs100,000, which will be increased again in January, taking the total rise to Rs210,000.

Prices of City variants have been raised by Rs60,000. These will again be jacked up in January next year, which will take the total price hike to Rs125,000.

BR-V prices will first be increased by Rs50,000 from October 22 and the total price hike will go up to Rs100,000 in January.

Recently, Indus Motor Company increased car prices in the range of Rs50,000 to Rs175,000 for November and December deliveries and from Rs100,000 to Rs350,000 for deliveries from January 2019 onwards.



According to an analyst, the price hike in two phases will lead to an increase in sales of the company in the short-term because people will make early purchases ahead of further rise in prices.

This is the fourth time Honda has increased car prices, just like Indus, since the rupee started losing its strength massively in December 2017.

Pak Suzuki Motor Company has already raised prices four times before the recent fifth round of massive rupee depreciation. The industry expects the company, which operates in the low-price segment, to hike prices again in coming days.



"Auto companies are trying to pass on the impact of rupee devaluation, but the increasing car prices will hurt demand significantly," Research Analyst Farheen Irfan told The Express Tribune.

She added that expensive cars and costly auto financing coupled with growing supply to the market with the entry of new players had painted a negative outlook for the industry.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 20^th, 2018.

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