1. Art and Diseño

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2015
BUSINESS
Middle East leads G 63 AMG 6x6 sales worldwide
The G 63 AMG 6x6 ends its production having enjoyed a successful lifespan
KUWAIT: Mercedes-Benz is calling the
final chapter in the production lifespan
of the G 63 AMG 6x6. Having enjoyed
two years of immense success in the
region, the company will stop the 6x6
production from May 2015. In a niche
class of its own, the G 63 AMG 6x6 is a
show vehicle that brings together the
best of worlds, and has enjoyed its
reign as the biggest, most rugged off
roader Mercedes-Benz has ever produced. The G 63 AMG 6x6 took the
region by storm when it was introduced in early 2013. It has been a successful model from the start and has
strengthened Mercedes-Benz’s leadership in the SUV segment. The Middle
East has proved to be the most crucial
sales market for the vehicle.
“Exceptionally popular in this region,
the G 63 AMG 6x6 will be missed not
just by Mercedes-Benz, but also by our
SUV enthusiasts. It enjoyed an immediate and over whelmingly positive
response from the day it launched in
2013 and continues to do so today. The
Middle East region alone accounts for
41 percent of the global sales of the G
63 AMG 6x6, which is no surprise for a
market always looking to have the best
or nothing,” said Dirk Fetzer, Director of
Sales & Marketing at Daimler Middle
East & Levant.
Taking the desert by the storm
The superior 6x6 comes with an allwheel drive technology, AMG V8 biturbo power and looks that leave no room
for doubt: 400 kW (544 hp), a 6x6 drive,
low-range ratio, five differential locks,
portal axles, tyre pressure control system and a special chassis allow this
pickup to make good progress in environments where the concept of individual mobility normally bites the dust as
soon as the road ends. The G 63 AMG
6x6 is also equipped with special, twopart 45.7 cm (18-inch) beadlock wheels.
When a tyre is fitted to this type of
wheel, it is clamped between the wheel
(formed by the two halves of the rim)
and an internal beadlock ring so
securely that, even in the event of a
complete loss of pressure, it cannot slip
off the rim and sand cannot enter.
Thanks to the wealth of interior
enhancements from the AMG stable,
passengers can enjoy the highest possible degree of off-road ability with three
portal axles which have been added to
the Mercedes-Benz off-road portfolio.
As a result, the ground clearance of the
G 63 AMG 6x6 is increased to 460 millimetres which allows the passengers to
enjoy a commanding view and additional ground clearance.
Other visual highlights include the
use of elegant carbon fibre for the integrated LED light strips above the windscreen as well as for the large flared
wheel arches while the rear load area
section has a distinctive stainless-steel
roll-over bar. The load area, which is
lined with par ticularly tough and
durable bamboo, can be accessed by
means of a tailboard.
Sporty luxury, the hallmark of AMG,
is the defining characteristic of the interior, with light brown or porcelain
designo leather, contrasting topstitching and attractive diamond-pattern
quilting. “For serious motoring enthusiasts and our Mercedes-Benz AMG customers, this is a chance to own a limited edition vehicle of a calibre that is
unequalled. This model is already a collector’s piece,” said Fetzer.
Burgan Bank announces
Yawmi draw winners
KUWAIT: Burgan Bank announced yesterday the names of the lucky winners of its
Yawmi account draw, each taking home a
prize of KD 5,000.
The lucky winners for the daily draws
took home a cash-prize of KD 5,000 each,
and they are:
1. HALEEMAH YAQOUB MOHAMMAD
2. ABDULWAHAB EISSA ALSHATTI
3. FAISAL FAHAD ALMESBAH
4. YOUSEF ADNAN SULAIMAN
To further add to the anticipation of
Yawmi account customers, Burgan Bank
now offers a Quarterly Draw with more
chances to win higher rewards, entitling one
lucky customer to win KD 125,000 every
three months. The Yawmi Account now
offers daily and quarterly draws, the quarterly draw requires customers to maintain a
minimum amount of KD 500 in their
account for 2 months prior to draw date.
Additionally, every KD 10 in the account, will
entitle customers to one chance of winning.
If the account balance is KD 500 and above,
the account holder will be qualified for both
the quarterly and daily draws.
Burgan Bank encourages everyone to
open a Yawmi account and/or increase their
deposit to maximize their chances to
becoming a winner. The more customers
deposit, the higher the chances they receive
of winning. For more information on opening a Yawmi account or about the new quarterly draw, customers are urged to visit their
nearest Burgan Bank branch and receive all
the details, or simply call the bank’s call center at 1804080 where customer service representatives will be delighted to assist with
any questions on the Yawmi account or any
of the bank’s products and services.
Customers can also log on to Burgan Bank’s
www.burgan.com for further information.
Trade is weak, with some
chances of revival
KCIC WEEKLY ANALYSIS ON ASIA
By Camille Accad
T
he global economy never fully recovered from the financial crisis.
Following the temporary rebound in
2010, world real gross domestic product
(GDP) grew by a mere 2.5 percent per
annum, compared to an annual average
growth rate of 3.1 percent in the twenty
years leading to 2007. The global economy
remained weak in 2014 with no major
change expected for this year. In fact, many
organizations have begun downgrading
their outlooks for 2015. This month, the
World Bank cut its forecast for global GDP
growth this year from 3.4 percent to 3.0
percent, which still remains high compared
to other forecasters. Despite economic
strength in the US, UK and India, the rest of
the global economy will remain weak;
namely in the euro-zone, Japan and BRIC
economies (Brazil, Russia, India and China).
In the last two years, global trade, the
sum of world exports and imports, hardly
expanded. According to International
Monetary Fund (IMF) figures, trade grew
2.6 percent YoY in the nine months leading
to September 2014, 1.5 percent in 2013
and 0.5 percent in 2012. Although the
trend is positive, the growth rate is still
much lower than the pre-crisis average of
9.3 percent YoY (1988-2007). Cyclical factors are one reason behind the slowdown
in global trade and its bearish outlook. On
one hand, the subpar consumption growth
rates in major economies will translate in
lower import demand, hampering exportintensive economies. On the other hand,
lower oil and other commodity prices is
dampening the reported trade numbers
even if the quantity sold is unchanged. Oil
exporters such as the GCC are already
affected by lower export rates.
The weakness in trade is also partly due
to a structural shift. First, the two largest
economies (US and China) have managed
to attract larger parts of the supply chain.
Because more products are produced
domestically they need to import and
export less. This is evident in the decline in
Chinese imports of parts and components -
from 60 percent of total imports in the mid1990s to 35 percent today - and the reduction in US manufacturing imports as a
share of total imports. Second, it has
become more difficult to finance trades
since the crisis. Recent financial crime regulations have limited trade flows. Higher
capital requirements under Basel III
planned to be implemented in 2019 also
suggest constraints ahead. According to a
2014 International Chamber of Commerce
survey, 71 percent of banks expect export
finance to be negatively affected by these
changes. In order to return to the doubledigit trade growth rates witnessed before
the crisis, some of these structural challenges need to be addressed.
Cyclical factors however can rapidly
change. Current market trends may help
some economies exit today’s business
cycle stage earlier than expected. First,
lower oil prices; slashed prices should
boost the disposable income of net energy importers, such as China, India, the
euro zone, Japan and, to a lesser extent,
the US, helping boost trade volumes.
Second, the US dollar appreciation; the
stronger dollar will facilitate the depreciation of most currencies, creating greater
competitiveness for these economies and
boost exports. These two market trends
are widely expected to continue this year
and may support trade levels.
Given the current global environment, a
surge back to pre-crisis trade growth rates
is unlikely in the short-term. However, as
the US and China reduce their reliance on
trade and regulations come into play, world
trade will expand, although in a more fragmented and selective manner. Given the
current market trends, winners in the shortterm will be the Asia’s less developed
economies, such as the ASEAN countries,
who will take advantage of the lower oil
prices, and the GCC, who will be protected
by the US dollar peg. These two regions will
continue to benefit from their competitive
advantage. In a period of weak global
trade, the GCC and emerging Asian trade
partnership is becoming increasingly
important.
Marketing Award: Matthias Luehrs, Michael Ruehle, Inderjit Gandhi, Mike Belk, Dirk Fetzer
A R Albisher & Z Alkazemi Co wins
two prestigious Daimler awards
KUWAIT: Strong sales and an impactful social
media strategy have contributed to A.R
Albisher & Z. Alkazemi Company - the official
distributor for Mercedes-Benz in Kuwait - being
awarded two coveted accolades at Daimler
Middle East and Levant Awards. Held in Dubai
on 13th January 2015, the awards took place in
the presence of Matthias Luehrs, Vice President
of Sales and Marketing at Daimler AG; Mike
Belk, CEO at Daimler Middle East and Levant;
Dirk Fetzer, Director of Sales and Marketing at
Daimler Middle East and Levant and Phil
Mayling, Head of Mercedes-Benz Passenger Car
Sales at Daimler Middle East and Levant.
Double winners in the Sales and Marketing
segment, A R Albisher & Z Alkazemi Company
earned awards for the ‘Best Ever Sales Results
2014’ and the ‘Best Online/Digital Campaign
2014’, demonstrating their leadership in tangible sales results and their effective adoption of
digital marketing channels.
Michael Ruehle, CEO, Abdul Rahman
Albisher & Zaid Alkazemi Company commented: “We are proud to win two such prestigious
awards and receive acknowledgement from the
Daimler community. 2014 was an extremely
successful year for us with a number of highprofile product launches and exciting new
models arriving in the showroom. Our Kuwaiti
customers have proved to be both discerning
and loyal and we are grateful for the continued
support. We are confident that we will again be
able to maintain strong customer-service standards and record strong growth in 2015 as we
roll out even more new models and launch a
number of engaging digital campaigns.”
The strong sales performance of A R Albisher
& Z Alkazemi Company plays testament to market appetite and dealership product offerings.
The S-Class and the new C-Class were both
notable contributors alongside the entire SUV
segment.
The unparalleled line -up offered by
Mercedes-Benz high-performance AMG subbrand was another large contributor to high
sales performance. The turbo charged, torque
Sales Award: Matthias Luehrs, Michael Ruehle, Mike Belk, Ashraf Tamim, Dirk Fetzer.
fuelled AMGs brought a more aggressive look C-Class for a weekend after a series of snippets
and a higher level of performance and han- and teasers in video format of Mercedes-Benz
dling, led by the CLA 45 AMG which proved cars were posted on social media channels,
with correct model guesses earning followers a
popular since its market entry.
A series of well-constructed promotions cov- chance to win. High level interaction was genering seasonal holidays, pre-owned vehicles erated, increasing footfall and followers to both
and safety service-weeks also garnered consid- sites and piquing the interest of automotive
erable attention, helping boost vehicle sales enthusiasts.
“Although 2014 was a very successful year,
and highlighting the Kuwait distributor’s marwe are continuously striving to better our perketing presence.
In the digital realm, DGM Kommunikation formance and are confident we will once again
continued to carry out Mercedes-Benz Kuwait’s surpass sales and customer expectations in
creative digital and marketing strategy for the 2015. With launches of the AMG GT S, GLE
fifth year running, contributing valuably to a Coupe, GLC-Class, GLA-Class, M-Class facelift
wide range of campaigns including the win- (GLE Class) , A-Class Facelift and of course the
ning “Guess the Star”, across both Instagram much awaited Mercedes-Maybach S-Class in
and Facebook channels. Mercedes-Benz fans the pipeline, it is sure to be a big year for us,”
were offered a chance to test-drive the all new added Ruehle.