72 companies assembling Chinese bike in Pakistan

The number of motorcycle assemblers has almost tripled in the country during the last 10 years as presently 72 registered companies are engaged in assembling of Chinese make of two- wheelers.
According to the statistics of Motorcycle Assemblers Association of Pakistan (MAAP), presently 72 registered private companies are involved in the manufacturing, importing and assembling of the two-wheelers in major cities of the country.
"Over a decade back the number of assemblers was dismal but after the ending of the deletion programme by the government, the number of assemblers has jumped significantly," said Sabir Shaikh, representative of the dealers and assemblers of motorcycles here on Thursday.
The existing customs duty on import of CBU (Completely Built Unit) of two-wheelers stands at 65 percent while that on CKD (Completely Knocked Down) kits is 15 percent.
Statistics further showed that during Jan-Dec 2010, the production of motorcycles stood at 1.5 million. It rose from 0.121 million in Jan, 2010 to 0.146 million in Dec, 2011.
The assembling companies are based in Karachi, Hyderabad, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Lahore and Hub (Balochistan).
"The cost of production in Karachi is too high as compared to that in the province of Balochistan, Punjab and even interior Sindh where cheap labour is available," said Sabir Shaikh.
At least 50,000 direct and 150,000 indirect labours are involved in this business.
"We can attract more business if the government announces uniformed duty for CKD and CBU kits," he pointed out.
The units are set up with an investment ranging from Rs30 to 40 million to a maximum depending on the real estate, labour and other miscellaneous cost.
"Presently we are facing tough competition because of the large number of assemblers of Chinese make motorcycles," said a Lahore based entrepreneur engaged in the motorcycle business.
Besides, the local market, assemblers are also catering to the demand of the Afghanis and Sri Lankans.
"Due to our cheap cost of production, we are exporting the motorcycles to Afghanistan and Sri Lanka," said the assembler and added unlike the past when only Japanese versions of motorcycles were on demand, the Chinese make are also popular nowadays.
The 70cc assembled and imported Chinese make are available at the range of Rs38,000/- to Rs41,000/- per unit while the Japanese make cost Rs65,000/- per unit in the local market.
"I would prefer the cheaply available Chinese motorcycles as compared to others which are very costly and the quality is almost the same as compared to fuel consumption and parts are concerned," said a customer, Ali Hussain, in the busy Akbar Market in Saddar.
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I'm journalist in Pakistan,And working in this field about 20 years.