Maruti Suzuki India and Hyundai Motor India, two of the country’s top passenger vehicle makers, have posted a decline in domestic sales in the month of February, while Mahindra and Mahindra has witnessed growth, said a report.
Domestic sales of Maruti Suzuki India fell by 7 percent year-on-year from 1,44,761 units in February 2021 to 1,33,948 units last month.
“The company took all possible measures to minimise the impact,” Business Line quoted Maruti as saying in a statement.
The country’s second-largest manufacturer, Hyundai Motor India, saw a fall in sales at 15 percent to 44,050 units in February 2022 from 51,600 units in the same period last year, data from the apex auto industry body Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) showed. The company is exploring alternative sources of semiconductors to ensure faster delivery of cars, it said.
Overall passenger vehicle sales in the domestic market were down 6.5 percent from 281,380 in February 2021 to 262,984 last month. Total two-wheeler sales fell by 27 percent at 1,037,994 units during the month compared with 1,426,865 in the same period last year, data from the SIAM showed.
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According to SIAM Director-General Rajesh Menon, the auto industry was hit by supply-side challenges like semiconductor shortages, high commodity prices, increase in cost due to new regulations and higher logistics costs.
“The industry is closely watching the possible impact of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine as global supply chains could come under stress,” Menon said.
Meanwhile, homegrown automaker Mahindra and Mahindra witnessed an 80 percent rise in domestic sales at 27,663 units in February as compared to 15,391 units in the corresponding month last year. The company saw a 79 percent growth in SUV sales, which registered the highest-ever monthly volume. The company expects demand to continue to remain strong on the back of easing of COVID-19 restrictions.
“We continue to closely monitor the semiconductor related parts supply and take corrective action as appropriate,” PTI quoted Veejay Nakra, Chief Executive Officer of the automotive division of M&M, as saying.
