FORD US Signs Deal to sell Cars in Myanmar (Burma)

[csv8]

Ford to sell cars and trucks in Myanmar

by: By Erika Kinetz, Associated Press
From: AAP
March 01, 2013 1:07PM



FORD Motor Co has signed a deal to distribute cars and pickup trucks in Myanmar, the head of Ford's local partner said.

The carmaker's first showroom in the country's largest city, Yangon, could open as early as May, Khin Tun, the director of Capital Automotive, said on Thursday.

Ford spokesman Neal McCarthy said the company is "gearing up for market entry" and has a local distributor, but declined to discuss details.

American brands PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, GE, Caterpillar and Danish brewer Carlsberg have all signed distribution deals in Myanmar, as rapid political and economic reforms transform the country from pariah state to investor darling.

Though lingering uncertainties about the stability of Myanmar's transformation and fears that the US could reinstate sanctions have discouraged many Western companies from making large, long-term investments, the deals show how Myanmar's economic landscape is starting to change. Much of the old economic order still prevails, but a few industries once monopolised by military and crony businesses are beginning to open to new players.

Businessmen who have avoided the taint of Western sanctions are snapping up deals with foreign partners and some of the old "cronies," long disparaged for their links to the country's repressive military leaders, are now trying to rebrand themselves to attract some of the rush of foreign capital.

Vehicle imports, for example, used to be so tightly controlled - and highly prized - that the government was able to cover much of the construction cost of its new capital city, Naypyitaw - which rose from scrubland and rice paddies about seven years ago - by paying "crony" businessmen with permits to import vehicles, rather than with cash.

Myanmar loosened vehicle import restrictions in late 2011, transforming the streets of the country's commercial capital, Yangon, from quiet lanes to gridlock. Old Japanese cars still dominate the streets here.

Carlsberg's joint venture with Myanmar Golden Star Breweries to distribute and eventually produce beer here, announced earlier this month, is remarkable because it marks the entry of a foreign player into a sector dominated by military-owned companies. The deal also shows how far Myanmar has come since 1996, when Carlsberg abandoned plans to work with Golden Star because of pressure from human rights activists, according to Vriens & Partners, a consulting company with offices in Yangon.

Ford's Myanmar distributor, Capital Automotive, is a unit of the Capital Diamond Star Group, whose managing director, Ko Ko Gyi, has managed to build a successful conglomerate with interests ranging from trading and distribution to construction and real estate, without running afoul of US sanctions.

This is his second big win with a US company. Diamond Star Co, another group company, became the sole importer and distributor for PepsiCo's Pepsi-Cola, 7-Up and Mirinda brands in Myanmar in August.
- See more at: http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/b....S3GGsj4A.dpuf

My comment. Maybe The Territory ?? its sold across the border in Thailand????

[In Focus]

Be nice if Ford US said, "Here you go, Ford Australia. A brand new market all for you. Make the most of the opportunity."

[MethodX]

Are they a rhd country?
Being an ex pom colony good possibility.

[Jason[98.EL]]

Originally Posted by MethodX

Are they a rhd country?
Being an ex pom colony good possibility.

they have both left and right hand drive cars a bit like us

pre 1970 were the same as us (right hand drive ) then from 1970 the went to left hand drive

this was bought around the then ruler whose astronomer said to get the cars on the right hand side of the road so it become law

so this makes the aus built cars non compliant if not made in left hand drive

Jason

[csv8]

Myanmar was a British colony until 1948. The cars had right hand steering and drove on the left side of the road. In 1970 all traffic was moved to the right. I asked several people for the cause of the change and there are two commonly held theories, both of which point to the eccentricities of General Ne Win. One theory is that Ne Win’s wife’s astrologer said that the country would be better off driving on the right side of the road. The second is that the General had a dream that the country should switch directions. Either way, the General called the shots and traffic was directed to move sides overnight.

Despite the lane shifts, virtually every vehicle in Myanmar has right hand steering. Many vehicles are very old, and those that are considered modern are second hand imports from Japan. It isn’t just the cars that have to catch up. One can still see old traffic signs in downtown Yangon facing the wrong direction.

I would think all of this would increase accident rates and confuse drivers. However, Myanmar drivers appear orderly, within the cities as well as the countryside. Whether they are in two, three, four or eight wheelers, drivers stick to the right side of the road and, despite logistical challenges, take-over without any negative consequences.

There is one anomaly we found to the right hand driving set up. The boats in Inle Lake still stick to the left when they pass each other. Perhaps time has indeed stood still in some parts of Burma.
From Wikepedia