Royal Enfield may build factory in Brazil

Hat tip David Blasco, who blogs at royalenfields.com. R. L. Ravichandran, Board Member and Executive director of Eicher Motors, the parent company of Royal Enfield, talked to journalists at the  Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers and said that within two years there will be a manufacturing presence in Brazil. Latin American economies are expanding at remarkable rates, whereas the US and European market for exports have been hit hard by the recession. Also Latin American countries impose tariffs on foreign vehicles that could be circumvented with a factory in situ. It is interesting that they chose Brazil. As far as I can tell Royal Enfields are not being sold in Brazil, whereas they are in Argentina, Chile and Colombia. It is true that Brazil has by far the more advanced automotive industry in South America, so that may have been a consideration. More here, here and here.