GM set to make Singapore comeback in July after it inks deal with local distributor
GM set to make Singapore comeback in July after it inks deal with local distributor
SINGAPORE – American multinational firm General Motors (GM) is set to make its Singapore comeback in July 2025 with a $650,000 supercar, eight years after it stopped offering Chevrolet mass-market cars in Singapore.
The Chevrolet Corvette is a high-performance sports car. Its arrival will pave the way for other GM-owned brands and models to be sold here, said an industry expert.
Local diversified motor company Alpine Group signed the agreement to sell GM vehicles in Singapore in February, according to Mr Keith Pang, the company's director.
Its subsidiary, Alpine Motors, was Chevrolet's distributor until 2017 when the American brand pulled out from the market. The company's contract to handle warranty claims and repairs of Chevrolet cars ended in 2019.
After the launch of the internal combustion engine, two-seater Corvette in July that is expected to cost around $650,000 with certificate of entitlement (COE), Alpine will bring in the petrol-hybrid version of the car in 2026. This is likely to be priced at around $900,000 with COE, said Mr Pang.
This is a different type of vehicle from the mass-market and family-friendly Chevrolet models that used to be sold here.
Although there were a handful of Corvettes brought in by parallel importers, this is the first time that the sports car will be available in Singapore through an official distributorship.
Relaunching GM with an upmarket model like the Corvette is a sound strategy, said Mr Mahaendra Gofar, an automotive industry insider for more than 25 years.
'With the Corvette as the halo car, GM can follow up with models that have more mass-market appeal,' said the executive who has worked in car companies in China, Germany and Singapore before his current role advising automotive outfits in Indonesia.
Mr Gofar said that GM's renewed interest in this part of the world may have been partly fuelled by sales volume falling in China due to stiff competition from Chinese car brands like BYD.
Besides Chevrolet, GM has three other passenger car brands in its stable: Buick, GMC and Cadillac.
While Buick is sold mainly in China, which uses left-hand drive models, Cadillac and GMC currently have right-hand drive cars that are sold in places like Australia, but not yet in South-east Asia.
Cadillac is GM's premium brand pitched against the likes of Lexus, Audi and BMW, while GMC is known for its sport utility vehicles with very large engines, which traditionally do not sell well in Singapore.
Although Chevrolet is widely available in the United States, its current models do not have right-hand drive versions yet.
GM pulled out of Singapore in 2017 because its Chevrolet models did not comply with the stricter emission standards that were coming into force then.
Around that period, the American auto group was also actively cutting back operations to stem losses. This included selling off the Opel brand to another automotive group, Stellantis, and closing factories in India and Australia.
Chevrolet will be the second American car brand since 2021 to be officially sold in Singapore by authorised distributors, after Tesla opened its doors here in 2021.
Ford, which is also American, now only sells pick-up trucks, while Jeep currently does not have a dealer here after its agent, Capella Auto, sold off its stock in February and stopped representing the American brand in Singapore.
Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Times
4 hours ago
- Business Times
Bank of Japan chief's dogged caution tempers board's hawkish instincts
[TOKYO] In 2024, Kazuo Ueda delivered Japan's first interest rate hike in 17 years, a bold shift for a central bank once dominated by advocates of ultra-loose monetary settings - now, the Bank of Japan head is among the policy board's least hawkish members. The 73-year-old governor will attend the Federal Reserve's Jackson Hole annual symposium this week, where Chair Jerome Powell's assessment of the American economy and hints on the next US rate cut will be factors in Japan's own deliberations. Ueda has become one of the more cautious members of the BOJ's nine-member board in recent months and his concerns about the economic impact of US tariffs are likely to provide some restraint among his fellow policymakers who are calling for more rate hikes, analysts and sources say. An analysis in the BOJ's recent outlook report in part underscores his caution over the expected hit to Japan's economy from tariffs that could complicate its decision around the timing of the next rate hike. 'Japan's trade deal with the US reduced, but did not eliminate, uncertainty over tariffs,' said a source familiar with the central bank's thinking, a view echoed by another source. 'It's too early for the BOJ to be optimistic on Japan's economy.' Ueda has faced growing calls from within his board to pay more attention to mounting inflationary pressure in Japan's once deflation-prone economy. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up A US rate cut could push up the yen against the dollar, which may ease concern about the inflationary impact of a weak yen - but could hurt exporters' profits depending on the pace. Stubbornly high food inflation has led some BOJ board members to warn of second-round price effects that could warrant another rate hike, a summary of the bank's July meeting showed. The hawkish signals contrast with Ueda's post-meeting comments justifying going slow on rate hikes on the view underlying inflation, which focuses on domestic demand and wages, remains below the BOJ's target. 'Governor Ueda appears to pay particularly close attention to the US economy,' said former BOJ board member Takahide Kiuchi. 'If he becomes more convinced that the US economy will stabilise, the BOJ could eye a rate hike this year.' Circle of hawks On the surface, the hawks appear to be gaining an upper hand. Among current board members, three - Naoki Tamura, Hajime Takata and Junko Koeda - are seen by markets as hawks due in part to their recent comments warning that rising food prices could risk leading to broader-based, sustained inflation. Deputy governor Ryozo Himino, who once warned that keeping real interest rates negative for too long would be 'abnormal', is considered the most hawkish among the BOJ's leadership. By contrast, the doves, who dominated the board when Ueda's predecessor Haruhiko Kuroda deployed a massive stimulus in 2013, have seen their presence and voice diminished. Toyoaki Nakamura, who voted against a rate hike in January, retired in June and was succeeded by Kazuyuki Masu, who is seen as taking a neutral stance on policy. Once a fan of heavy money printing, Asahi Noguchi has also turned more neutral and voted for raising rates in January. Such shifts in the board's policy bias put Ueda and his career central banker-turned deputy Shinichi Uchida in the more dovish camp, as their comments continue to focus on downside risks to Japan's fragile economy. Their caution reflects the BOJ's preference to await more data to gauge whether the global economy, including Japan's, will withstand the hit from US tariffs, say sources familiar with the bank's thinking. It also reflects lingering worries within the BOJ that the damage to exports and capital expenditure will intensify in coming months - as predicted by the bank's economists. In analyses included in the July quarterly outlook, BOJ economists warned company profits are likely to fall this year because of US tariffs, hurting capital expenditure. There is good reason to worry. While Japan's trade deal with the US agreed to cut tariffs for its mainstay auto exports, Washington has not made clear the timing of the reduction. Many analysts expect exports, which lifted Japan's second-quarter GDP, to lose momentum later this year as the hit from US tariffs deepens. Even hawkish board members warn such risks could warrant caution on rate hikes. 'We need to scrutinise whether any negative impact from US tariffs could appear,' board member Takata said in a speech on July 3. Despite the board's hawkish tilt, Ueda's cautious stance may prevail given the influence the governor holds over BOJ decision making. With support from staff of key divisions, the governor prepares proposals on policy and interest rates for a vote by the board. Most have been approved unanimously or by a majority, including the BOJ's exit from a decade-long stimulus last year. The governor's proposal has never been voted down since the current board framework took shape in 1998. 'I don't see any tough negotiator in the current board who could stage a revolt. It's hard to imagine the hawks proposing a rate hike against the governor's will,' said former BOJ official Nobuyasu Atago, who used to be staff for hawkish ex-board member Miyako Suda. 'Governor Ueda's leadership within the board appears to be fairly strong.' REUTERS
Straits Times
8 hours ago
- Straits Times
PlayStation prices rise as US tariffs bite
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The new price for PS5 will be US$550 (S$707), with a 'Digital Edition' priced at US$500 and a Pro version for US$750. SAN FRANCISCO - Sony on Aug 20 said it is bumping up the price of PlayStation 5 video game consoles by US$50 (S$64.26) in the United States due to a 'challenging economic environment.' Tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump hike the cost of goods brought into the US, leaving companies like Japan's Sony to decide whether to pass that on to consumers. 'Similar to many global businesses, we continue to navigate a challenging economic environment,' Sony Interactive Entertainment vice-president of global marketing Isabelle Tomatis said in a post. After initially being threatened with a 25 per cent hike, Japan negotiated a 15 per cent tariff with the Trump administration. 'As a result, we've made the difficult decision to increase the recommended retail price for PlayStation 5 consoles in the US.' The new price for PS5 will be US$550, with a 'Digital Edition' priced at US$500 and a Pro version for US$750, according to Ms Tomatis. In May, Sony warned it was considering tweaking prices in the US, estimating that tariffs could wind up costing the company about US$680 million in the fiscal year. American companies are feeling the crunch, too. New York-based cosmetics giant Estee Lauder recently estimated the impact of the new tariffs at around US$100 million for the 2026 financial year and plans to adjust its prices to offset the additional cost. US snack giant PepsiCo could increase prices of its soft drinks about 10 per cent to mitigate effects of US tariffs, particularly those on imported aluminium used to make soda cans, according to trade magazine Beverage Digest. Meanwhile, California-based energy drink maker Monster Beverages is considering raising prices due to a 'complex and dynamic customs landscape,' according to chief executive Hilton Schlosberg. The Commerce Department this week said the US broadened its steel and aluminum tariffs , impacting hundreds more products that contain both metals such as child seats, tableware and heavy equipment. Since returning to the presidency, Mr Trump has imposed tariffs on almost all US trading partners. Though the impact of Mr Trump's tariffs on consumer prices has been limited so far, economists warn that their full effects are yet to be seen. Some businesses have coped by bringing forward purchases of products they expected will encounter tariffs. Others have passed on additional costs to their consumers, or absorbed a part of the fresh tariff burden. AFP
Business Times
8 hours ago
- Business Times
PlayStation prices rise as US tariffs bite
SONY on Wednesday said it is bumping up the price of PlayStation 5 video game consoles by US$50 in the United States due to a 'challenging economic environment.' Tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump hike the cost of goods brought into the US, leaving companies like Japan's Sony to decide whether to pass that on to consumers. 'Similar to many global businesses, we continue to navigate a challenging economic environment,' Sony Interactive Entertainment vice-president of global marketing Isabelle Tomatis said in a post. After initially being threatened with a 25 per cent hike, Japan negotiated a 15 per cent tariff with the Trump administration. 'As a result, we've made the difficult decision to increase the recommended retail price for PlayStation 5 consoles in the US.' The new price for PS5 will be US$550, with a 'Digital Edition' priced at US$500 and a Pro version for US$750, according to Tomatis. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up In May, Sony warned it was considering tweaking prices in the US, estimating that tariffs could wind up costing the company about US$680 million in the fiscal year. American companies are feeling the crunch, too. New York-based cosmetics giant Estee Lauder recently estimated the impact of the new tariffs at around US$100 million for the 2026 financial year and plans to adjust its prices to offset the additional cost. US snack giant PepsiCo could increase prices of its soft drinks about 10 per cent to mitigate effects of US tariffs, particularly those on imported aluminum used to make soda cans, according to trade magazine Beverage Digest. Meanwhile, California-based energy drink maker Monster Beverages is considering raising prices due to a 'complex and dynamic customs landscape,' according to chief executive Hilton Schlosberg. The Commerce Department this week said the US broadened its steel and aluminum tariffs, impacting hundreds more products that contain both metals such as child seats, tableware and heavy equipment. Since returning to the presidency, Trump has imposed tariffs on almost all US trading partners. Though the impact of Trump's tariffs on consumer prices has been limited so far, economists warn that their full effects are yet to be seen. Some businesses have coped by bringing forward purchases of products they expected will encounter tariffs. Others have passed on additional costs to their consumers, or absorbed a part of the fresh tariff burden. AFP
