Frankfurt, June 17: The global auto industry is facing fragmentation rather than further consolidation in the next eight years and the sector's main gainers will be small firms in growth markets, according to a study. British consultancy firm Autopolis predicted the biggest winners of global market share would be small manufacturers, including China's First Automotive Works (FAW) and Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp (SAIC), India's Tata Engineering and Russia's AvtoVaz.
"Autopolis thinks that there will be a period of greater competitive fragmentation ahead with the smaller firms winning at the expense of the big ones," said the firm in a statement.

In a sector characterised by heavy consolidation in recent years and saturated markets in western Europe and the United States, the smaller players were growing fast with more protected local markets, Autopolis noted.
"In contrast some of the bigger names such as Fiat, PSA, Ford and Volkswagen are stuck mostly in lower growth markets which are facing a slowdown in the next few years," it added.
Fiat is struggling to return to profits, and is due to unveil a new industrial plan later this month, while VW saw its profits tumble by over two thirds in the first quarter.
The consultancy said some bigger firms may be forced to disintegrate due partly to a shrinking global market in the short term.
It said Ford might have to sell off its Japanese Mazda Motor affiliate or upmarket Swedish unit Volvo, while General Motors might have to spin off its Saab unit and sell its stake in Suzuki Motor.
Autopolis also said of the larger firms, it expected DaimlerChrysler to be a winner, provided it weathers the coming slowdown and absorbs Japan's Mitsubishi Motors and South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. Bureau Report