The
house of Tata has been a jewel in India Inc.'s crown for over
a century. Tata group companies are top players in their own
right and active in industries ranging from Steel, IT Services,
Power Generation, Automobile, Telecom and Tea Production.
Today, the group is truly emerging as a global giant with
a market value of more than $70 bn and almost 2,90,000 employees
in its workforce in 80 countries. During the fiscal 2007,
the group revenue was equivalent to around 3.2% of India's
GDP.
After
the overwhelming admiration that it got for launching the
world's cheapest car, Nano, Tata Motors, India's leading commercial
vehicles manufacturer, reached yet another milestone in the
global automotive history when it acquired the UK-based
Ford Motors' Jaguar and Land Rover. The Tatas already
own Tetley Tea and steel-maker Corus in the UK. The price-tag
of $2.3 bn put on the two carmakers represents "a bargain
compared to the prices paid by Ford almost 20 years ago",
according to Rebecca Wright, Automotive Analyst, Global Insight.
After
the acquisition of these two brands, Ford found itself in
a precarious situation, as, amidst the economic recession
blues, sales in the world's biggest luxury car markets of
the US and Europe started flagging. While Jaguar took a 33%
hit in US sales in 2007, Land Rover's numbers dropped by 13%.
However, the global sales of Land Rover crossed the 2-lakh
mark for the first time in 2007. For Ford, this comes as a
relief, as the business has resulted in losses in excess of
$10 bn over the past decade. On the whole, the long anticipated
acquisition has generated speculation whether it heralded
the end of western dominance in the auto manufacturing industry. |
