Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai lead zoom in April car sales, fight out chip crisis

Even as production levels remained at healthy levels, they continue to be impacted to an extent by a shortage of electronic components. Representation (Credit: Pixabay)

Car sales in India rose last month, sustaining the momentum of growth in the first three months of the calendar year on the back of new models and reduced waiting periods.

Maruti Suzuki India reported a 7 percent increase in despatches to dealers at 160,529 units in April from a year earlier. Domestic sales rose 9 percent to 143,558 units last month as against 132,248 units in April 2022, the country’s largest automobile company said.

“The shortage of electronic components had some impact on the production of vehicles. The company took all possible measures to minimise the impact,” Maruti Suzuki said in a statement on May 1.

Hyundai Motor India said total sales increased 3.5 percent to 58,201 vehicles in April. The South Korean carmaker’s domestic wholesale despatches went up by 13 percent to 49,701 units last month from 44,001 units in the year-ago period.

“This strong growth has been backed by an overwhelming response to the recently launched all-new Verna that has more than doubled its volumes from its earlier version,” Hyundai Motor India COO Tarun Garg said in a statement.

Tata Motors sold 47,007 passenger vehicles, including electric vehicles, in the domestic market in April, which was 13 percent higher than 41,587 units sold in the same month last year.

In the international markets, it sold 100 passenger vehicles in April compared with 43 units a year ago. The company sold 6,516 electric vehicles in the domestic and international markets compared with 2,333 electric vehicles in April 2022.

Kia India’s wholesale despatches climbed 22 percent to 23,216 units in April.

“Our strategic business decision to establish leadership in iMT (intelligent manual transmission) is working well with the iMT models contributing 34 percent to the overall April sales,” said Hardeep Singh Brar, national head, sales & marketing, at Kia India.

MG Motor India reported an over twofold rise in retail sales at 4,551 units in April from 2,008 units a year earlier.

“The supply chain constraints remain in a few models; however, the company is working towards meeting customer demand. The coming months are expected to bring in further improvements on this front,” MG Motor India said in a statement.

According to Rohan Kanwar Gupta, vice-president and sector head - corporate ratings at ICRA, wholesale dispatches of passenger vehicles remained at healthy levels in April even amid concerns over moderation in demand on account of the rise in the cost of ownership.

“In April 2023, domestic wholesale volumes are estimated to have been ~3.4 lakh units, representing a marginal growth on a sequential basis and a healthy 15 percent growth on a YoY basis,” Gupta said.

Even as production levels remained at healthy levels, they continue to be impacted to an extent by a shortage of electronic components, he said.

Mahindra & Mahindra  said its total sales increased by 36 per cent to 62,294 units in April. Its total dispatches to dealers stood at 45,640 units in the same month last year.

The company's passenger vehicle wholesales in the domestic market rose by 54 per cent to 34,698 units last month vis-à-vis 22,526 units in April last year, M&M said in a statement. The company said its exports last month declined 33 per cent to 1,813 units, as compared to 2,703 units in the year-ago period.

M&M Automotive Division President Veejay Nakra stated that after a record-breaking year in FY23, the company continued its growth in SUVs by selling 34,694 units, registering a growth of 57 per cent in April.

"We continue to keep a close watch on the dynamic supply chain situation, which is an industry phenomenon," he added.