Half of India’s 14 car and SUV manufacturers who control 90 percent of the market managed to outsell August 2019 sales last month, buoyed by a strong uptick in retail demand and helped by the low base of last year.
Total domestic sales of all the 14 brands stood at 234,343 units, a growth of 20 units compared to 195,800 units clocked in the same month last year, as per sales data disclosed by each company.
Entry-level cars and sports utility vehicles (SUV) have believed to have kept up its momentum through August, as demand outstripped supply across select segments. Ganeshotsav celebrated in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Goa, Andhra Pradesh and Onam in Kerala helped attract buyers.
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Maruti Suzuki, India’s largest carmaker, reported a jump of 21 percent in passenger vehicle (PV) sales in August to 113,033 units as against 93,173 units sold in the same month last year. Sales of Alto and S-Presso, both entry cars, nearly doubled to nearly 20,000 units.
Hyundai Motor India, the country’s second-largest carmaker posted a 20 percent jump in volumes in August to 45,809 units as compared to 38,205 units sold in the same month last year. The new Creta, with 65,000 bookings, and the compact SUV Venue drove volumes for the Korean car brand.
Tarun Garg, Director (Sales, Marketing and Service), Hyundai Motor India Limited, said, “We would like to carry on with cautious optimism as uncertainty still surrounds the pandemic”.
Tata Motors held on to its third spot clocking sales of 18,583 units a growth of 154 percent compared to 7,316 units during the same month last year. The Mumbai-based company does not share monthly data but the above numbers were shared by a senior Tata Motors executive Pratap Bose, who is head of design on a social media platform.
Utility vehicle specialist Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) witnessed the lowest growth among the top five carmakers. The Mumbai-based company reported a growth of 1 percent to 13,651 units as against 13,507 units clocked in the same month last year.
Veejay Nakra, Chief Executive Officer, Automotive Division, M&M said, “In August we registered growth in both SUVs and Pick-ups. We have been able to meet the uplift in demand by managing the supply chain challenges and going forward will continue to keep our focus on it.”
Kia, one of the newest brands to enter India, grabbed the fifth spot with sales of 10,853 units, a growth of 74 percent compared to 6,236 units sold in the same month last year. Kia’s newest addition, the Sonet compact SUV, helped pushed volumes besides the demand for the Seltos.
