Ashok Leyland to stabilise inventory levels by year-end

New Delhi, Nov 17 (IANS) The country's leading truck and bus maker Ashok Leyland Ltd hopes to bring down its inventory to normal level by the year-end, a top official said here Monday.

'I expect inventory levels back to normalcy by the end of December,' Ashok Leyland managing director R. Seshasayee told reporters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum-India Economic Summit.

The company, like other Indian auto majors in the country, was hit by falling demand for vehicles in the last two months, which led to inventory pile-up.

Ashok Leyland, part of the Hinduja group, last week announced it was cutting production at its plants to three days a week until the end of 2008 because of falling demand.

Seshasayee, however, expressed optimism over India's growth momentum. 'Certainly the growth rate will get affected in Indian economy next year, but it will remain to be at least in the region of seven percent,' he said.

He added that the company would acquire land for its joint venture project with Japan's Nissan for producing light commercial vehicles by January next year. The plant is expected to start production by mid-2011.