It hopes the launch of 20 new models in South America by 2020 will restore it to profitability in the region. "We will do everything possible in coming years to win back the leading position of VW" in Brazil, VW brand sales chief Juergen Stackmann said.VW, which slashed about 7,000 jobs in South America in past years and shrunk its dealer network, has said it wants to reduce the average age of the brand's Brazilian lineup to less than five years by 2020 from eight years in 2015.Brazil was one of the world's five biggest auto markets until the 2014-16 downturn and remains a major base of operations for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV , GM , VW and Ford .Analysts said VW had been slow in the past few years to refresh models in Brazil and set slightly higher prices than mainstream peers which overhauled lineups in the passenger-car heavy Brazilian market more quickly. "It's not unrealistic to say that VW had not been refreshing things very quickly," said IHS Markit analyst Stephanie Brinley. Price premiums "are difficult to translate into a (Brazilian) market that doesn't have capacity for a higher price at all. "Brazil may not be the highest-margin market but it's a huge market with vast potential for VW," said NordLB analyst Frank Schwope who has a "Buy" rating on the stock.- Reuters

Source: The Star November 16, 2017 18:22 UTC