November turned out to be a mixed bag for automobile makers with major manufacturers, including Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Honda, posting a growth in domestic sales during the month. On the other hand, car makers like Mahindra & Mahindra and Ford India continued to feel the pressure of high interest rates and slowdown in the economy.
Market leader Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) posted an increase of 17 per cent in domestic sales at 1 lakh units during the month against 85,510 units in November last year.
MSI saw a marginal decline in sales of mini segment cars (Alto, A-Star and WagonR) to 37,746 units in the reported month. Sales of the compact segment (Swift, Estilo, Ritz, Dzire) rose by 13.8 per cent to 37,339, while sales of company’s mid-sized sedan Ciaz stood at 5,232 units.
Hyundai Motor India sold 35,511 units last month as compared to 33,501 units in November, 2013, up 6 per cent. Company Senior Vice President (Sales and Marketing) Rakesh Srivastava said strong investment of launching four new products in a year’s time had resulted in the growth.
Honda Cars India reported a whopping 64 per cent increase in sales at 15,263 units in November against 9,332 units in the same month last year. “We continue to witness strong demand for all our products across markets. We are aggressively expanding our dealer network to reach out to more customers,” company Senior Vice President (Marketing and Sales) Jnaneswar Sen said.
Toyota Kirloskar Motor said its domestic sales stood at 12,175 units during the month, up 19 per cent compared to 10,208 units in the same month last year. Its Senior Vice President (Sales and Marketing) N. Raja said, “We have registered growth in domestic and overall sales. We hope to maintain this momentum with the year ending this month.”
Mahindra & Mahindra’s domestic sales, however, declined by 11 per cent to 32,100 units last month from 36,261 units a year earlier. “The auto industry continues its sluggish demand on the back of factors such as low consumer sentiment and high interest rates,” M&M Chief Executive (Automotive Division and International Operations) Pravin Shah said.
Reducing international crude prices and the subsequent lowering of fuel prices should help in the revival of demand in the coming months, he added.
Ford India’s domestic sales declined by 28.42 per cent to 5,661 units in November from 7,909 units in the same month of previous year.
“The perceived improvement in consumer sentiment is yet to translate into better sales for the automotive industry. A lacklustre festive season was certainly not what the industry expected,” Ford India Marketing, Sales and Service Executive Director Anurag Mehrotra said.
He further added, “While we are confident of the long-term growth potential of the Indian market, we continue to be cautiously optimistic in the near-term.”
General Motors India also saw its sales declining by 33.1 per cent to 4,157 units in November from 6,214 units in the same month last year. The company’s Vice President P. Balendran said, “Even though the lower fuel prices are encouraging, the interest rates remain sticky and inflation continues to be high.”
The outlook remained grim and it was very unlikely that passenger cars would post positive growth this fiscal keeping in view the present economic conditions, he added.
The two-wheeler continues to show good growth. Chennai-based TVS Motor Company posted 33 per cent rise in domestic sale at 1.79 lakh units. Royal Enfield also said its domestic sales were up 53 per cent at 27,198 units last month.
HMSI posted a growth of 15.5 per cent in domestic sales of scooters and motorcycles. .
