Tenneco Inc. has announced agreement to buy a majority share in Öhlins Racing AB, becoming a subsidiary of the U.S. giant - owner of Monroe (automotive) shock absorbers and former owner of Marzocchi. Earlier this year it was announced that Tenneco had bought Federal Mogul, the owner of Ferodo brake pads and Champion filters for $5.4bn. Founded by Kenth Öhlin in 1976, Yamaha Japan bought a majority stake in 1987, with Kenth buying back 95% of the business in 2007 - he will continue to be part of Öhlins, serving on the board, and retains a minority interest in the company. It is thought that Henrik Johansson will continue as CEO.
BMW Motorrad’s worldwide sales were down by -0.8% (126,793 units) for the first 9 months of 2018; September sales were +0.2% (14,124 units).
Giovanni Castiglioni has been ousted as MV Agusta chairman and CEO, with Russian oligarch’s son Timur Sardarov taking the reins following an additional £35m capital injection by ComSar Invest and its parent Black Ocean Group - the private equity investment vehicle operated by multi-billionaire oil and gas magnate Rashid Sardarov. Castiglioni has been appointed as company president.
Italian motorcycle and scooter brand Malaguti was relaunched at EICMA by the Austrian KSR Group, saying it will “offer a full range of dynamic and reliable motorcycles and scooters for a young, urban audience”, starting with water-cooled Aprilia 125 cc engines. Malaguti was founded in 1930 by Antonino Malaguti, with production finishing in 2011. KSR is making a habit of acquiring and re-launching moribund brands - most famously Lambretta.
EU motorcycle registrations by month for 2018 Q3 were 108,874 units in July (100,029 in 2017), 77,488 units in August (68,086 in 2017) and 82,897 units in September (76,611 in 2017).
Yamaha is to collaborate with major Indian bicycle manufacturer Hero Cycles and Mitsui & Co. to evaluate the business opportunities available for electrically power-assisted bicycles in India. Yamaha Motor will supply Hero Cycles with drive units (E-kits).
The BMW Group and Daimler AG are to headquarter the proposed global mobility joint venture company they announced (March 2018) in Berlin. The business is to “offer customers a single source for sustainable urban mobility services”, offering their customers “a holistic ecosystem of intelligent, seamlessly connected mobility services, available at the tap of a finger”, expanding their existing on-demand mobility offering in the areas of CarSharing, Ride-Hailing, Parking, Charging and “Multimodality”. Each will hold a 50 percent stake, but will remain competitors in their respective core businesses.
For the first 9 months of 2018, Brembo announced revenue up +8.0% to € 1,999.7 m; EBITDA at € 380.0 m (19% margin); EBIT of € 266.8 m (13.3% margin) and net financial debt down by € 22.4 m to € 240.7 m. Net profit was € 197.2 million (+0.4%). Net investments amounted to € 184.1 m.
