VEHICLE MANUFACTURING
Too soon to forecast doom, says Naamsa
Naamsa head Mike Whitfield says volatility goes with being an emerging economy
It is far too early to make gloomy predictions about the future of the local motor industry in the wake of SA’s credit downgrade, according to Mike Whitfield, president of the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of SA (Naamsa). "Volatility comes with being an emerging economy," he said. "Multinational investors know this and deal with it." Whitfield’s comments came after Craig Parker, African mobility specialist at international business consultancy Frost & Sullivan, suggested on Friday that the downgrade could have serious consequences for the South African motor industry by hurting investor confidence, raising interest rates, weakening the rand and reducing disposable income. "Major effects … will be felt through the entire value chain of automotive production," he said. Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies told a conference last week that one of the aims of future motor industry policy would be to raise local content in vehicles made in SA from 38% to at least 60%....
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