Bike RPM Bike Industry News and Reviews

HARLEY DAVIDSON TO BUY MV AGUSTA

Harley-Davidson will buy Italian motorcycle maker MV Agusta Group for about $109 million to boost its presence in Europe. The deal will enable Harley-Davidson expand into the European market. Sport, bikes constitute about 80 percent of sales in Europe, Harley-Davidson Chief Executive Jim Ziemer said."Harley-Davidson's sales there have been growing in the double digits for the past three years, and the company now has nearly 10 percent of that market."

The MV Agusta aquisition gives Harley-Davidson a chance to go after European sport motorcycle riders, who tend to be younger than U.S. motorcycle riders, Ziemer said.Sport motorcycles are typically high performance and require riders to lean forward. Heavy weight motorcycles like Harley-Davidson's top-selling touring bikes are heavier and allow for a more laid-back riding style since drivers can sit upright.

The heavier-weight bikes are more popular in the U.S., but worldwide, sport motorcycles account for half of all sales. It's a big market for Harley-Davidson to enter. "This gives us a better way to get into that and understand that customer base at a different level than we're currently playing at," Ziemer said.