Leyland to enter small vehicle mkt

Ashok Leyland is evaluating the scope to enter the small vehicle segment.

Ashok Leyland is evaluating the scope to enter the small vehicle segment, the company's Chief Operating Officer said on Monday.

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"We do not want to directly jump into the small vehicle segment from the truck segment but we are evaluating those aspects to go phase wise," COO Vinod Dasari told reporters.

All the major truck companies of the world are not going for small vehicle segments like cars, he said replying to a question whether their company had a plan to produce small vehicles like Tata.

"We had also thought of that once or twice but at present we do not have a plan for that," Dasari said.

The company is evaluating the prospect of going for small trucks before jumping into the small vehicle segments, and at present production of less then nine tonnes truck is being considered, he said.

Initially the company could go for seven tonnes truck and subsequently small vehicles could be considered, he added.

The officer said the company expects a growth of 15 per cent in the truck sector this year and they are working on a plan to increase their market share from the current about three per cent.

Since the transportation market was increasing by 15 per cent as well as the economy of the country, there was tremendous potential for growth of truck segment in the country, Dasari said.