Kawasaki Heavy Industries reported a 7.1% increase in net sales from its Motorcycle and Engine business for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2013. The bump in sales resulted in the division’s first year-end profit since the 2007-2008 fiscal year.

The Motorcycle and Engine division, which includes Kawasaki‘s ATVs, UTVs, personal watercraft and general purpose engines, generated 251.8 billion yen (US$2.462 billion) in sales revenue, up from 235.2 billion yen reported the previous fiscal year.

The sales increase contributed to an operating income of 2.3 billion yen (US$22.5 million) for the 2012-2013 fiscal year. The last time the Motorcycle and Engine division made a profit, it was known as the Consumer Products and Machinery division (including industrial robots), reporting an operating income of 19.7 billion yen the year ended March 31, 2008. Continue Reading »

Yamaha Motor reported a 3.7% increase in net sales for the first quarter ended March 31, 2013. Net sales from motorcycles increased by 4.6% despite an 8.1% decrease in unit sales. Overall, the company reported a profit of 7.5 billion yen (US$73.3 million) over the quarter, down from the 27.0 billion yen reported last year.

According to Yamaha‘s first quarter report, the company sold 1.470 million motorcycles over the first three months of the year. That’s down from 1.599 million motorcycles sold in the same quarter of 2012. Sales were up in Japan but down in North America, Europe and Asia.

Despite selling about 129,000 fewer motorcycles, sales revenue grew to 219.5 billion yen (US$2.15 billion) from net sales of 209.9 billion yen in the first quarter last year. Costs were up however, reducing operating income from motorcycle business to 3.0 billion yen from 5.4 billion yen. Continue Reading »

BMW announced it set a new company all-time sales record for a single month, delivering 14,587 motorcycles to customers in April 2013. That represents an 11.5% increase from the 13,088 motorcycles sold in April 2012.

The record month helped push BMW‘s overall sales over the first four months to 39,319 motorcycles and scooters, a 5.0% increase from the 13,088 units sold in the same period of 2012.

“Five per cent growth as compared to the first four months of the previous year is certainly satisfying as far as we are concerned,” says Heiner Faust, vice president of sales and marketing for BMW Motorrad. “It was April in particular that got us off to such a good start in 2013, having been the best month for sales in the entire history of BMW Motorrad.”

More impressively, the sales growth comes in spite of declining sales for the overall motorcycle industry, especially in Europe. Continue Reading »

Suzuki reported an operating loss of 11.9 billion yen (US$117.1 million) from its motorcycle business for its fiscal year ended March 31, 2013. The loss stems from a 10.7% decrease in motorcycles sales and a 9.6% decline in motorcycle revenue from its 2012-2013 fiscal year.

According to Suzuki‘s year-end report, motorcycles accounted for 230.3 billion yen in sales revenue, down 254.8 billion yen reported the previous year. The drop in sales contributed to the 11.9 billion yen operating loss, compared to a loss of 2.4 billion yen reported in the 2011-2012 fiscal year.

Suzuki sold 2.312 million motorcycles in its fiscal year, a year-on-year decrease of 10.7% from 2.589 million motorcycles. North American sales were down 8.6%, decreasing to 44,000 units from 49,000 units the previous year.Sales were also down 8.6% in Asia, 3.0% in Japan and 28.7% in Europe where the overall economy continues to struggle. Continue Reading »

Ducati sold 9,817 motorcycles in the first three months of 2013, according to the first quarter report from parent company Audi. The first quarter sales result represents a 5.2% decline from the 10,360 Ducati motorcycles sold in the same quarter of 2012 when the company was owned by Investindustrial.

Sales were down in Europe where the economy continues to struggle. According to Ducati, the worldwide demand for 500cc and larger motorcycles contracted by 17.0%, so Ducati’s sales decrease wasn’t as bad as for other companies.

The U.S. continues to be Ducati’s largest sales market, with the company delivering 1,605 motorcycles to customers over the first quarter. Continue Reading »

The Piaggio Group reported an 11.6% drop in net sales for the first quarter of 2013, the result of a struggling economy and unseasonably cold weather in Europe and a flatlining two-wheeler market in Vietnam. There was however some good news in North America, Vespa sales in India and a 27.8% increase in Moto Guzzi sales.

According to the company’s first quarter report, Piaggio reported net sales of 303.4 million euros (US$396.8 million), down from net sales of 343.1 million euros reported the same quarter of 2012. Motorcycles and scooters account for net sales of 181.0 million euros (US$236.8 million), an 8.7% decline from net sales of 198.4 million euros reported in the first quarter of 2012. Overall, the Piaggio Group reported a net profit of 1.1 million euros, compared to 3.2 million euros reported in the first quarter last year. Continue Reading »

BMW reported worldwide sales of 24,732 motorcycles over the first three months of 2013, a slight increase from the 24,373 motorcycles sold in the same quarter in 2012. These figures include sales of 1,110 Husqvarna motorcycles before BMW sold the company to KTM boss Stefan Pierer.

Sales revenue from BMW Motorrad however was down 2.7% to 436 million euros (US$569.2 million) over the quarter from 448 million euros last year. Profit from BMW’s motorcycle division however, rose to 50 million euros (US$65.3 million) compared to 37 million euros last year. Part of the profit stems from an operating income of 4.8 million euros from the deconsolidation of Husqvarna.

The 1.5% increase in BMW motorcycle sales comes in spite of an overall downturn of 17.3% in worldwide motorcycle sales over the quarter. The 24,732 motorcycles sold also broke the company’s all-time sales record for the first quarter. Continue Reading »

U.S. motorcycle sales were down 14.7% over the first quarter compared to the same period last year, reports the Motorcycle Industry Council.

The industry group, which collected data from 20 reporting manufacturers, says American consumers bought 93,375 motorcycles and scooters in the first three months of 2013, down from the 109,425 vehicles purchased in the same period of 2012.

Sales were up very slightly for off-road motorcycles, but dual sports, streetbikes and scooters all saw a double-digit percentage decrease. It is notable that there was an increase in off-road models, as that particular segment had been shrinking in recent years. Continue Reading »

Honda reported sales of 15.5 million motorcycles for its fiscal year ended March 31, 2013. That marks a 2.8% increase from the 15.1 motorcycles sold the previous fiscal year. Sales were particularly strong in North America where Honda reported a 25% increase in motorcycles sold.

The company’s motorcycle operations generated net sales of 1.34 trillion yen (US$13.7 billion) for the year, down slightly from 1.35 trillion yen. You know you’re dealing with a big company when it counts its sales in billions of yen – and still needs to use a comma. Overall, including its automotive and power products businesses, Honda reports a net profit of 75.7 billion yen (US$772.9 million), up from 71.5 billion yen the previous year.

Honda did especially well in the North American market, reporting sales of 250,000 motorcycles (Honda includes scooters and ATV sales in this figure) compared to 200,000 in the previous fiscal year. New models such as the Gold Wing F6B, CRF250L and CRF110 helped spur on sales in North America. Continue Reading »

Harley-Davidson reported 15.9%  increase in motorcycle revenue despite selling 9.1% fewer motorcycles over the first quarter of 2013.

According to the company’s first quarter 2013 report, Harley-Davidson recorded revenues of $1.15 billion from motorcycle sales, compared to $995.9 million in the same quarter of 2012.

At the same time, Harley-Davidson sold 54,254 motorcycles worldwide over the first quarter, down from 59,677 motorcycles in the same period last year. Harley-Davidson attributes the decrease to a longer winter this year as well as an abnormally warm spring in 2012. Motorcycle shipments to dealers, however, were up 17% to 75,222 motorcycles compared to just 64,263 motorcycles in the first quarter of 2012. Continue Reading »