Are the high-end scooter manufacturers suffering because of the
"Chinese Junk"? This Forbes article
http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2008/05/07/afx4979829.html
doesn't mention off-brand competetion as being any percentage of the
Piaggio sales drop, but I am confident that it is having some impact.
To my end, I like this because it will only make the Italian and
Japanese scooters come down in price. Bad news for current owners,
but good news for scooting in general. The more affordable it is to
get into the trend, the better (IMHO). Even if you despise the
mainland China scooters, you can thank them for the global market
competetion they provide and how that will affect prices for everyone.
2 comments:
Thanks for dropping by our blog. Guess you read where a friend of ours also bought a Roketa, but a 50cc. Enjoyed this article on the Piaggio scooter sales. We bought Vespas, but many people cannot afford the high cost of these scooters and are looking for a cheaper solution. Also the dollar is so weak against the Euro. I am not surprised that their market is shrinking just when the scooter market is growing. People have to look to get the most for their buck. Nice blog you have here. We will put a link on ours to yours. Happy Riding.
I think that you are missing the detail in the story. The major inpact of the decrease was due to engine sales decrease and the lower value of the U.S dollar. Not a unit volume decrease. It is also interesting to note that "In geographical detail, Piaggio sales were. . .up 12.1 percent in India and up 41.5 percent in Asia Pacific."
Post a Comment