SME Times News Bureau | 06 Sep, 2012
Escorts Limited, a leading manufacturer and supplier of agri-machinery products, is focusing on African markets to export its tractors as the farm sector in country is slated for robust growth, a top official of the company said Wednesday.
"We export to a lot of countries. But right now, we are putting focus on three different markets. One is Africa for obvious reasons," Escorts Agri Machinery head of marketing Shenu Agarwal said in Kolkata.
"Africa is slated to be the next farming basket of the world as there are huge tracks of very productive lands which are not tilled today. So agriculture is coming in a big way in Africa and we would like to participate in it," Agarwal said.
The firm, which is the flagship company of the Delhi-based Escorts Group and currently exporting five percent of its total sales, said its overseas sales would grow in the future.
Agarwal said the two other international markets on which the firm had been emphasising were SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) countries and Eastern Europe.
Informed that about half of its total overseas sales went to Africa, he said, "It will stay as the highest growing market for us in terms of exports."
Agarwal was in the city on the occasion of launching two new tractor models, available in 60HP and 65HP.
He said the leading tractor maker was emphasising on high-end premium segment products.
"The segment (of tractors) above 50 HP is growing rapidly. In 2011-12, it grew by 12 percent. In 2012-13, we are expecting it to grow by 15 percent and by 2018-19, it can reach over 20 percent of the market. We want to gain a significant share in this segment," he added.
The firm, which has about 12 percent overall market share, currently possesses 16 percent market share in the premium segment.
