June was an eventful time for the auto industry, marked by record rollouts in the sport utility vehicle or SUV space. This coincided with the global semiconductor supply shortage moderating, which resulted in vehicle production returning to near-normal levels. This in turn pushed up car sales, given that the chip shortage had led to long waiting times for would-be buyers. This was particularly true for OEMs or original equipment manufacturers with a line-up of SUVs in their arsenal, given the steady popularity of the segment.
Market leader Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) recorded total sales of 155,857 units in June 2022, a 5.76 percent rise from 147,368 units sold in June 2021. The company’s total volumes generated in the month include domestic sales of 125,710 units, sales to other OEMs of 6,314 units and exports of 23,833 units. Its total domestic sales went up by 1.29 percent on an annualised basis to 132,024 units in June 2022 against 130,348 units in June 2021.
MSIL, while sharing the numbers, maintained that the shortage of electronic components had a “minor impact” on the production of vehicles, mainly in domestic models. The company took all possible measures to minimize the impact, it said.
Hyundai Motor India, which had lost the number two status in sales to Tata Motors a month back, regained its position with domestic sales of 49,001 units (up 21 percent) and exports of 13,350 units, yielding a total sales figure of 62,351 units for the month.
Tarun Garg, director (sales, marketing and service), Hyundai Motor India, said, “With the semiconductor situation showing signs of easing out, the sales number have again started showing a positive trend. Further, the newly launched Hyundai Venue has been receiving tremendous customer response.”
Meanwhile, Tata Motors continued to see growth in sales, recording an all-time high monthly passenger vehicles sales of 45,197 units last month, growing by a huge 87 percent from a year earlier. Sales in the first quarter of FY23, at 130,125 units, was also the highest ever, surging 102 percent over the same quarter last year. Despite that, however, the Indian automaker could not maintain the second spot in the domestic car industry.
Shailesh Chandra, managing director, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility, said, “Demand for passenger vehicles continued to stay strong in Q1FY23 even as the supply side remained moderately impacted due to the lockdown in China. Overcoming the challenges, Tata Motors posted record-breaking monthly sales (June 2022) as well as quarterly sales (Q1FY23).”
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) said its total auto sales for June 2022 stood at 54,096 vehicles. In the utility vehicles (UV) segment, M&M sold 26,620 vehicles in the month, 60 percent above year-earlier monthly sales. The passenger vehicles segment (which includes UVs, cars and vans) saw sales of 26,880 units in June 2022. Exports for the month stood at 2,777 vehicles.
Veejay Nakra, president, automotive division, M&M, said, “Q1FY23 is our second consecutive highest SUV sales quarter due to continuing robust demand for all our brands including XUV700, Thar, Bolero and XUV300. We sold 26,620 SUVs in June and overall, 54,096 vehicles, registering a growth of 64 percent.”
Kia India too, which managed to sell 24,024 cars in June 2022, registered its highest-ever monthly sales. The South Korean carmaker achieved a year-on-year growth of 60 percent as it sold 15,015 units in the same period last year.
Hardeep Singh Brar, vice-president and head of sales and marketing, Kia India, said, “Despite the global supply chain constraints, we are still managing to achieve milestones in record time."
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