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.... as usual the private sector has little vision. What is REQUIRED is not merely lower duties on small vehicles but.... low or zero duties on flex/biofuel/ethanol vehicles and punitively high duties on gasoline powered vehicles especially guzzlers.
Horizontal integration of our auto fleet/auto industry into our biofuel industry is the way to cut costs of fossil fuel imports and sustain the sugar industry.
Should be plain for policy makers and the private sector to see... Brazil is an outstanding example of such a policy.
Where there is no vision the people perish... so we continue to perish.
Auto dealer calling for lower duties on small cars
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Kia Motors Jamaica president Dwight Moore is calling on the Government to lower duties on smaller, economical and more environmentally friendly cars in a bid to curtail demand for foreign exchange and fuel.
Specifically, he wants the state to reduce duties on smaller cars within the 1,000 to 1,600 cc rating.
Moore believes the move would facilitate a policy shift on motor vehicles that aims to lower demand for foreign exchange, conserving fuel, reducing carbon emissions.
"It's about what Jamaica needs now, not just about the car dealers; the whole approach to vehicles needs to be radically revamped," he said. "The smaller cars is where a stimulus is needed, this could in turn stimulate the other sectors of the economy which are dependent on the motor vehicle industry such as the banking and insurance sectors, parts suppliers and gas station operators, and generate a much deeper and wider revenue stream for the Government while stimulating economic recovery and development."
According to Moore, 1,000 to 1,600 cc rating vehicles are the most sold the most units overall in Jamaica. He asserts that targetting reduction on duties for smaller vehicles would translate into a more far-reaching stimulus for both the new and used car sectors, currently said to be suffering a 50 per cent falloff in sales, than the proposed reduction in the Special Consumption Tax (SCT) mooted by the Jamaica Used Car Dealers Association (JUCDA), although underlining that such an intervention would be welcome.
He also wants the state to consider lowering duties on commercial and agricultural vehicles, while examining how the state itself purchases vehicles and facilitates vehicle purchases for its officers through duty concessions and other incentives.
"The Government must lead by example by driving non-gas guzzling and inexpensive vehicles," said Moore in a press statement.
He added that the Government should also encourage the importation of diesel vehicles over the more expensive hybrids which cost an average of 30 per cent more than a conventional vehicle, on the grounds that any savings in fuel efficiency might not accrue over the effective lifetime of the car.
"While hybrids are a first world technology, Jamaica is not a first world country, what we should do now is cap the duty concession on vehicles below US$20,000 therefore making popular models such as Toyota Corollas, Mitsubishi Lancers and Nissan Sunny's cheaper, while simultaneously reducing the incentive to steal these cars due to their high price and the demand for parts. We should also reduce duties on commercial and agricultural vehicles to encourage production," said Moore.
Horizontal integration of our auto fleet/auto industry into our biofuel industry is the way to cut costs of fossil fuel imports and sustain the sugar industry.
Should be plain for policy makers and the private sector to see... Brazil is an outstanding example of such a policy.
Where there is no vision the people perish... so we continue to perish.
Auto dealer calling for lower duties on small cars
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Kia Motors Jamaica president Dwight Moore is calling on the Government to lower duties on smaller, economical and more environmentally friendly cars in a bid to curtail demand for foreign exchange and fuel.
Specifically, he wants the state to reduce duties on smaller cars within the 1,000 to 1,600 cc rating.
Moore believes the move would facilitate a policy shift on motor vehicles that aims to lower demand for foreign exchange, conserving fuel, reducing carbon emissions.
"It's about what Jamaica needs now, not just about the car dealers; the whole approach to vehicles needs to be radically revamped," he said. "The smaller cars is where a stimulus is needed, this could in turn stimulate the other sectors of the economy which are dependent on the motor vehicle industry such as the banking and insurance sectors, parts suppliers and gas station operators, and generate a much deeper and wider revenue stream for the Government while stimulating economic recovery and development."
According to Moore, 1,000 to 1,600 cc rating vehicles are the most sold the most units overall in Jamaica. He asserts that targetting reduction on duties for smaller vehicles would translate into a more far-reaching stimulus for both the new and used car sectors, currently said to be suffering a 50 per cent falloff in sales, than the proposed reduction in the Special Consumption Tax (SCT) mooted by the Jamaica Used Car Dealers Association (JUCDA), although underlining that such an intervention would be welcome.
He also wants the state to consider lowering duties on commercial and agricultural vehicles, while examining how the state itself purchases vehicles and facilitates vehicle purchases for its officers through duty concessions and other incentives.
"The Government must lead by example by driving non-gas guzzling and inexpensive vehicles," said Moore in a press statement.
He added that the Government should also encourage the importation of diesel vehicles over the more expensive hybrids which cost an average of 30 per cent more than a conventional vehicle, on the grounds that any savings in fuel efficiency might not accrue over the effective lifetime of the car.
"While hybrids are a first world technology, Jamaica is not a first world country, what we should do now is cap the duty concession on vehicles below US$20,000 therefore making popular models such as Toyota Corollas, Mitsubishi Lancers and Nissan Sunny's cheaper, while simultaneously reducing the incentive to steal these cars due to their high price and the demand for parts. We should also reduce duties on commercial and agricultural vehicles to encourage production," said Moore.
