Pak Suzuki extends motorcycle plant shutdown till April 28

Pak Suzuki Motor Company (PSMC) has announced its motorcycle plant will remain shut until April 28. The decision was made due to the ongoing import restrictions that have affected the auto sector, causing a shortage of inventory.

“Due to shortage of inventory level… the management of the company has decided to extend shutdown period of its motorcycle plant till April 28, 2023,” read a notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX).

Import restrictions bite: Pak Suzuki extends automobile plant shutdown

Earlier this month, PSMC had already shut down its motorcycle plant from April 04 to April 15 due to a lack of raw materials. Meanwhile, the automobile plant was shut from April 07 to April 14.

PMSC is the assembler, manufacturer, and marketer of Suzuki cars, pickups, vans, 4x4s and motorcycles as well as related spare parts. The Suzuki brand itself is from Japan.

Pakistan’s auto sector is currently facing several crises. Other listed companies, such as Indus Motor Company Limited and Honda Atlas Cars, have also had to halt production in recent months due to economic difficulties.

Earlier, Honda Atlas Cars Pakistan had to extend the shutdown of its plant by another 15 days. Other automakers, including Indus Motor Company Limited, have also announced production shut down on a temporary basis.

As per the latest data released by the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA), Pakistan’s auto industry reported car sales of 9,211 units in March, 66% lower compared to the number in March 2022.

JS Research analyst Wasil Zaman said in a report that “with foreign exchange reserves at critically low levels leaving little room for improvement on the supply side for auto manufacturers, we expect cumulative volume decline during fiscal year 2023 to clock in at over 50% year-on-year, which will extend to first half of the fiscal year 2024”.