Automobile makers such as Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra and Kia saw strong growth in vehicle dispatches to dealers in August, ahead of the festival season, as better semiconductor availability helped boost production.
Maruti Suzuki, the country's largest carmaker, posted a 30% rise in wholesales in August to 1,34,166 units.
“The shortage of electronic components had a minor impact on the production of vehicles, mainly in domestic models,” said Shashank Srivastava, senior executive director, (Marketing & Sales) at Maruti Suzuki India. “In the last three months (June-July-August), the cumulative sales figure is 992,000 which is the highest-ever three-month cumulative figure for the industry. So, the demand continues to be strong and the supply has also become better,” he added.
Mr. Srivastava added that the company currently has an order backlog of 3.77 lakh units.
Hyundai Motor India said wholesales grew 6% to 49,510 units.Tarun Garg, director (Sales, Marketing & Service), Hyundai Motor India said supplies are continuing to ease with the continuously improving semiconductor situation.
Homegrown Tata Motors’ domestic passenger vehicle (PV) sales climbed 68% to 47,166 units last month, while Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) reported an 87% jump in domestic PV sales to 29,852 units.
Veejay Nakra, president, Automotive Division, M&M, said, “August was a very exciting month with launches across many segments for us... We registered the highest-ever SUV volume of 29,516 in August, registering a growth of 87% over August ‘21. Our Commercial Vehicles (CVs) continue to deliver strong performance registering strong growth across segments. The supply-chain situation continues to remain dynamic for select product lines and we are taking appropriate actions to minimise impact.”
The company sold 26,285 commercial vehicles last month compared with 11,432 units a year earlier.
Kia India said its dispatches to dealers increased 33% to 22,322 units. "We have been observing upward sales momentum since the beginning of this year, and it is a good sign for the Indian automotive market," Kia India vice president and head of Sales and Marketing Hardeep Singh Brar said.
While Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) reported a 17% rise in total wholesales to 14,959 units, Skoda Auto India posted a 10% increase to 4,222 units.
In the two wheeler segment, Chennai -based TVS Motor Company saw 33% growth in domestic two-wheeler sales to 2,39,325 units in August. “With positive market sentiments and the upcoming festive season, the company is optimistic about the demand in the domestic two-wheeler market. As the availability of semiconductors have supported in reaching a balanced supply chain, the company is now geared up to swiftly meet the festive demand,” the company said in a statement.
For Royal Enfield too, domestic sales shot up 61% to 62,236 units. CEO B. Govindarajan said, “We launched the Hunter 350 early this month... With excellent reviews from experts across the globe and increasing consumer demand, we are confident that the Hunter will continue this momentum into the upcoming festive season in India. In the forthcoming months, we will see the Hunter 350 start of sales across several international markets as well.”
