Malaysian carmaker Sime Darby plans to set up a luxury car dealership in India and expand its operations in the country to boost growth in the two economies, an official told Reuters.
"We cannot ignore India." Group CEO Jeffrey Salim Davidson told Reuters: And India is too big to ignore. So, we are looking at different places in India to see if we can work with local partners to start a car dealership business there.
He also said India, the largest country in the world, has the fifth-largest economy. According to Jeffri, Sime Darby plans to work with local companies to sell BMW cars in Jakarta and Medan before expanding to India, South Asia and its largest economies.
Sime Darby, which derives 35 percent of its revenue from China, sees demand for luxury cars there remaining strong despite slowing economic growth. "Chinese people have money. They still buy cars," Jeffri said. "The problem in China is not the demand problem. It's a supply problem."
Jeffri said automakers in China have been increasing their market share since the pandemic, as a lack of supply has forced manufacturers to cut prices and squeeze margins. Sime Darby was founded in 1910 and is one of Malaysia's oldest conglomerates, with operations ranging from farms to construction. We currently operate in 17 countries.
It spun off its palm oil and property businesses in 2017 and sold other businesses, including Ramsay Sime Darby Health Care, which was sold this month.
Sime Darby currently focuses on industrial and automotive businesses, including the assembly of Porsche cars in Malaysia and the distribution of BYD electric vehicles in Malaysia and Singapore.
