AUGUSTASIA BUSINESS OUTLOOK8NEWSROOMJAPAN'S ITOCHU TO IMPROVE CAPACITY OF USA SOLAR POWER BUSINESSItalian super luxury automaker Automobili Lamborghini expects exponential growth in India with the potential to become a top market in the Asia Pacific region in the long-term, driven by customers who are the youngest globally, according to a senior company official. With the company selling a record 103 units in India in 2023, Automobili Lamborghini Asia Pacific Region Director, Francesco Scardaoni said his wish is to cross the annual sales mark of 150 units in the country in 2026."In terms of volume, India is number 14th in the world and number sixth in Asia Pacific. In terms of percentage it is the fastest growing market," Scardaoni told PTI.In 2023, Lamborghini crossed the 10,000 units worldwide mark and at the same time in India the company crossed the 100-cars mark. In the first half of 2024, deliveries worldwide are still showing growth compared to previous year and India is on a similar trend, he added.Last year, China was Lamborghini's biggest market in the Asia Pacific region with 845 units, followed by Japan (660), Korea (434), Australia (263) and Taiwan (131).When asked how far can India rise in the rankings of its top markets in the region, Scardaoni said, "It is still a long way to go to reach number three, two and number one but again we believe that in the long run for a country like India, it is possible... I believe that in the medium-term India can grow very fast."He further said, "We believe that India has all the right indicators in place to let us think that there would be really an exponential growth."Asked when Lamborghini could cross annual sales of 150 units in India, he said, "My wish would be 2026. This would be my wish, when will it happen." Itochu, a Japanese trading company, plans to invest 1.2 trillion yen ($8.18 billion) more to expand its solar and other renewable energy capacity in the U.S. It aims to increase its capacity by 150 percent to around 10,000 megawatts by 2030. Itochu is in the process of developing 27 solar farms in the United States, with plans for gradual expansion. The consideration of building wind farms will be taken into account as well.Plans to increase budget for land acquisition and construction of eco-friendly power plants in the U.S. from 800 billion yen to approximately 2 trillion yen will be finalized at a later date. Funding from banks and investment funds will primarily be utilized for the project, with Itochu also utilizing its own finances.In August 2020, Berkshire Hathaway disclosed it acquired a 5 percent ownership in Itochu and four other Japanese trading firms. Buffett went to Japan to meet their leaders in April of the previous year. Berkshire Hathaway announced in February that it had increased its ownership in the five companies to around 9 percent.In 2023, Itochu introduced its initial fund for renewable energy ventures in the United States, with backing from Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Tokyu Land, and other investors. The fund is expected to reach $500 million by around September. It anticipates setting up additional funds in the future and securing investments from companies outside of Japan in South Korea, Singapore, Canada, and other nations. ITALY'S LUXURY CARMAKER LAMBORGHINI CROSSES RECORD SALES IN INDIAAUGUSTASIA BUSINESS OUTLOOK8
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