Recently, Avis Car Rental, a unit of Avis Budget Group Inc. (CAR - Analyst Report), made its first appearance in Taiwan, in a drive to expand its Asian operations. The company’s decision to enter Taiwan is backed by the growing car rental demand on the island as well as the speeding up of its economic growth.

Avis has opened three rental locations in Taiwan including Tao Yuan International Airport, downtown Chu-Pei City and downtown HsinChu City.

Avis is the first international car rental company to have set up operations in Taiwan. The company’s products and services to the residents and visitors of Taiwan will include a broad variety of well-maintained, latest model vehicles; short- and long-term rentals; personal and corporate car leasing programs; premium chauffeur and transfer services.

Avis has already established itself as a leading provider of general-use vehicle rental and related services in Asia since 1970. The company operates in over 300 locations in the continent, providing effective vehicle rental, vehicle leasing and limousine/premium chauffeur services through a network of wholly owned subsidiaries, joint ventures and licensee agreements.

Avis' legacy of Asian operations began in 1970 with the opening of its first car rental service point in Hong Kong. Later, the company added more locations launching operations in Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in 1972.

Since then, the company has managed to expand its operations in these existing regions, while also adding additional locations. Today, the company operates in 18 markets including India, Mainland China and Vietnam.

Avis Budget Group is the leading vehicle rental company in North America, Australia and New Zealand. Moreover, a formidable network of more than 10,000 rental locations and 350,000 vehicles enable the company to strengthen its well-established position in a highly competitive vehicle rental industry.

Avis follows a core global strategy of partnering with leading travel brands to expand its customer reach while creating additional demand. The company’s recent partnership in Germany testifies its commitment to its global strategic initiatives, which is based on the value of its brands and its ability to provide synergies to its partners while also benefiting their brands and businesses.

The company faces intense competition from other established players, such as Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (HTZ - Snapshot Report), Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. () and Ryder System Inc. (R - Analyst Report).

We maintain our long-term Outperform recommendation on Avis Budget. The company currently has a Zacks #2 Rank, implying a short-term Buy rating.