Honda Business Brief

Issue 69 October 2008

1. Honda Sets All-Time Record for Worldwide Automobile Production for the First Half of the Fiscal Year

Honda set an all-time record for worldwide automobile production for the first half of the fiscal year, experiencing a year-on-year increase to 1,966,778 units (an increase of 2.9% compared with the same period last year) for the fifth consecutive year.  Production outside of Japan increased to 1,360,844 units (an increase of 6.8%) for the same period, also setting an all-time record for the first half of a fiscal year. 

http://www.world.honda.com/news/2008/c081027Automobile-Sales/

2. Honda's Cumulative Global Motorcycle Production Reaches 200 million Units

Honda's cumulative worldwide motorcycle production reached the 200 million-unit milestone at the end of September 2008. Honda achieved this milestone in the 60th year since the company began motorcycle production in 1949 with the Dream D-type. Honda currently produces motorcycles at 32 plants in 22 countries around the world. Honda's annual worldwide motorcycle sales exceeded 10 million units in 2004, and 2007 sales reached 13.47 million units, a 7% increase from 2006. Honda envisions sales of more than 18 million units in 2010.

http://www.world.honda.com/news/2008/c081030Motorcycle-Production-Reaches-200-million-Units/

3. Consolidated Financial Summary for the Fiscal First Half Ended September 30, 2008

Honda's consolidated net sales and other operating revenue amounted to JPY 5,694.0 billion, a decrease of 3.5% compared to the same period a year ago, due to factors including the negative impact of currency translation.  Equity in income of affiliates totalled JPY 65.4 billion, an increase of 3.5% compared to the same period of a year ago, increasing in the fiscal first half for the 9th consecutive year and achieved an all-time record for any fiscal first half.  For the first half of the fiscal year, Honda's consolidated unit sales were 5.608 million motorcycle units (+22.3% compared with the same period last year), 1.897 million automobile units (+0.7%) and 2.541 million power product units (- 8.8%).

http://www.hondanews.eu/en/index.pmode/modul%7Cdetail%7C0%7C1015,DEFAULT%7C21%7Ctext%7C1/index.pmode

4. Honda Demonstrates Life Saving Motorcycle Technology

In its efforts to improve safety for everyone, especially vulnerable road users, Honda's leading motorcycle to car communication system was demonstrated for the first time in Europe at the CAR 2 CAR Communication Consortium event at the Opel Test Track in Dudenhofen, Germany, from 22-23 October 2008. The system generates warnings to riders and drivers of other vehicles by continuous exchange of positioning data from satellite GPS sources. The demonstration exhibited the interoperability of the Honda life-saving system which facilitates communication with vehicles from 8 other manufacturers.

http://www.hondanews.eu/en/index.pmode/modul|detail|0|1010,DEFAULT|21|text|1/index.pmode

5. Honda Soltec Begins Sales of Thin-Film Solar Cells for Public and Industrial Use

Honda's wholly-owned solar cell subsidiary Honda Soltec Co., Ltd. began sales throughout Japan of thin-film solar cells for public and industrial use this month. Having sold solar cells for home-use since October 2007, Honda intends to expand its customer base by manufacturing and selling solar cells capable of the high-capacity electrical generation required by public and industrial facilities. With increased awareness of environmental issues, Honda is seeing growth in demand not only for private- but also public- and industrial-use solar cells and continues to strengthen its business foundation by expanding the product line.

http://world.honda.com/news/2008/c081023Thin-Film-Solar-Cells/

6. ASIMO welcomes Turkish Minister of Trade and Industry at Istanbul International Auto Show 2008

The New ASIMO recently travelled to Turkey for the first time to attend the 2008 Istanbul International Auto Show (10-19 October). The official opening ceremony of the show, as well as Honda's press conference, was attended by Turkish Minister of Trade and Industry, Zafer Caglayan. The Minister also met ASIMO who, after a demonstration of its latest capabilities, welcomed Mr Caglayan on to the Honda stand with a handshake.

http://www.hondanews.eu/en/index.pmode/modul|detail|0|1005,DEFAULT|21|text|1/index.pmode

7. Honda Exhibits World Premiere V4 Concept Model, Signifying a New Era at the International Motorcycle Show held in Cologne, Germany

Honda exhibited the World Premiere V4 Concept Model at Intermot Cologne (Motorcycle and Scooter Fair). The V4 Concept Model proposes a new, sensual design direction based on Honda's trademark 4-cylinder V-engine. This year Honda celebrates its 60th anniversary as a company and next year the 50th anniversary of its participation in road racing, as well as the 30th anniversary of racing with an innovative 4-cylinder V-engine with oval pistons. Furthermore, at the Milan International Motorcycle Exhibition on 4 November, President of Honda Motor Europe Ltd., Mr Shigeru Takagi, announced that the V4 concept model would be the basis for a future line up, the first of which will be produced in the first half of 2010.

http://world.honda.com/news/2008/2081007World-Premiere-V4-Concept/

8. Production Begins at Honda's Second Auto-Plant in Thailand

Honda, Thailand's second largest manufacturer and exporter of passenger cars, announced that production has begun at the company's second newly operational world-class auto plant, built adjacent to its existing plant in Ayutthaya province, Thailand. Honda has invested more than Bht. 6.2 billion in its second manufacturing facility in Thailand. Covering an area of about 150,000m2, the new auto plant will employ an additional 2,200 Honda associates and double its annual production capacity to 240,000 units.

http://world.honda.com/news/2008/c081021Second-Auto-Plant-Thailand/

9. Team of German Researchers to Receive Honda Prize 2008

The Honda Foundation, co-founded by Soichiro Honda and his younger brother Benjiro Honda, and currently headed by Hiromori Kawashima, is pleased to announce the 29th laureates of the 2008 Honda Prize will be awarded to a German team of researchers of electron microscopy led by Dr. Maximilian Haider, Dr. Harald Rose, and Dr. Knut Urban. Their team developed the world-first Atomic Electron Microscope, a type of transmission electron microscope (TEM)*1 capable of atomic-level imaging using aberration correction technology. Many expect new materials could be discovered and macroscopic properties could be analyzed at atomic levels by use of this technology.

http://world.honda.com/news/2008/c080930Honda-Prize-2008/

10. Honda Begins Mass Production of Civic Sedans in Indiana

Honda began mass production of the fuel-efficient, 4-cylinder Honda Civic sedan at its new facility in Greensburg, Indiana. The $550 million facility will produce 200,000 vehicles, and employ 2,000 associates at full capacity. "With continued high demand for the Honda Civic, we are honoured and excited to help meet the needs of our customers in North America," said Yuzo Uenohara, President of Honda Manufacturing of Indiana (HMIN). "Our new Indiana associates are dedicated to building the very best Honda products, with customer satisfaction as our top goal."

http://world.honda.com/news/2008/c081009Production-Civic-Indiana/

11. Honda to Build New Automobile Transmission Plant at Hamamatsu Factory

On 4 November 2008, Honda announced plans to build a new automobile transmission plant within its Hamamatsu Factory, Japan, in order to strengthen production of automobile automatic transmissions (AT) and continuously variable transmissions (CVT), to meet growing global demand. With the new plant, annual AT and CVT production capacity at the Hamamatsu Factory will increase from the current 700,000 units to 1.1 million units. The new plant is scheduled to become operational within 2010, and related investment is expected to reach approximately 14 billion yen.

http://world.honda.com/news/2008/c081104New-Automobile-Transmission-Plant/

For further information on any of the above articles, please visit the following websites:

Europe                   www.hondanews.eu

USA                        www.hondanews.com

Japan                     www.honda.co.jp/PR/

                                world.honda.com

Or call:                   

Chris Rogers, Honda Motor Europe                                  +44 (0) 7768 374870

Tamon Kusakabe, Honda Motor Europe                          +44 (0) 7768 374871

Simon Walsh, Good Relations                                           +44 (0) 7824 473861

CAR SALES BY COUNTRY FOR SEPTEMBER 2008 - EUROPE

CAR SALES BY MODEL FOR SEPTEMBER 2008 - EUROPE