Following a record breaking fiscal with sales of 21.2 million units, the Indian auto industry has begun FY24 on a positive note. Demand in the rural markets, however, remained a concern even as unseasonal rains continue to play spoilsport.
Most OEMs in the four-wheeler space posted healthy growth, with market leader Maruti Suzuki India reporting a 9.5% YoY growth with sales of 139,519 units, including LCVs. Shashank Srivastava, Senior Executive Officer – Sales and Marketing, MSIL said the company’s growth in the domestic market can be attributed to its growing SUV portfolio. SUVs, in fact, contributed almost 21% of Maruti’s total sales in April this year, up from its share of 12.6% last April.
Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor India registered domestic sales of 49,701 units in April 23, which is 12.9% higher than the 44,001 units the company had sold in the corresponding month last year. Tarun Garg, COO, HMI said one of the key reasons behind the growth is the launch of the sixth generation Verna. Meanwhile, with the Exter SUV set to be launched soon, the company expects the growth drive to build further.
HMIL’s sister company, Kia India registered a 22% YoY growth with 23,216 units in April 2023 as against 19,019 units in April last year. During the first four months of the calendar, the Korean carmaker has posted a growth of 24% YoY with cumulative sales of 97,951 units. The Sonet sub-compact SUV was the best seller for the company with sales of 9,744 units followed by the Seltos and Carens with sales of 7,213 units and 6,107 units respectively.
Tata Motors also reported a 13% growth in its YoY sales last month, wherein it sold 47,007 units in the domestic market. The company is expected to launch the Altroz iCNG in May, which can further bolster the company’s growth as both CNG and premium hatchbacks are in high demand among Indian consumers.
UV major Mahindra and Mahindra posted 54% YoY growth in April 2023, with domestic sales of 34,698 units as against 22,526 units it managed in April last year. The company said while its SUV sales grew by 57% YoY to 34,694 units, the cars and vans division saw a fall by 99% YoY to just 4 units in the month. M&M is expected to do away with its cars section, which indicates a possible end for the e-Verito.
MG Motor India too posted good growth with domestic sales of 4,551 units in April 2023, a 126% YoY growth over the same month last year. Although the supply chain constraints remain in a few models, the company is working towards meeting customer demand and the coming months are expected to bring in further improvements on this front, said the company.
Nissan Motor India reported a growth of 24% in April 2023 with sales of 3,249 units as against 2,140 units in the same time last year. In FY23, the company posted de-growth of 10.7% YoY with domestic sales of 33,611 units.
However, Rakesh Srivastava, Managing Director, Nissan Motor India, noted that the outlook for FY24 remains positive on account of GDP growth and normal monsoon, with industry projections of high single digit growth for FY24. The focus continues to be the domestic market, he said, while “continuously expanding our global footprint of exports to more than 15 countries”.
The story of Japanese carmakers Honda Cars India and Toyota Kirloskar Motor, nonetheless, was a bit different. Honda reported a 32.5% drop in sales YoY with retails of 5,313 units last month as opposed to 7,874 units it sold in the corresponding month last year. Honda expects a turnaround in its performance with the launch of its much-anticipated mid-size SUV in June this year.
TKM, on the other hand, registered sales of 14,162 domestic units in April 2023 as against 15,086 units it had sold in April 2022, representing a drop of 6.12% YoY. The company clarified that the drop in sales was due to the week-long maintenance shutdown from April 24-28, 2023 for the upkeep of machinery and equipment to sustain operational efficiencies, productivity and safety.
In the first four months of CY23, TKM has posted a healthy domestic growth of 26% with sales of 61,005 units over the 48,278 units that were sold in the same period last year. Atul Sood, Vice President, Sales and Strategic Marketing, TKM said the Fortuner line-up is now scooping a whopping 82% of the market share in the segment.
2W Domestic Wholesales Up, Exports A Concern
In a month that saw the introduction of new emission norms, most two-wheeler OEMs in the country posted healthy growth figures, even though exports continue to be a challenge for all.
TVS Motor Company registered a sales growth of 4% with overall sales, including three-wheelers, increasing from 295,308 units in the month of April 2022 to 306,224 units in April 2023. Of this, two-wheelers accounted for 294,786 units in April 2023, registering a 5% growth over 280,022 units it had sold in April 2022. Domestic two-wheeler sales grew 29% to 232,956 units in April 2023, from 180,553 units in April 2022.
Royal Enfield posted sales of 73,136 motorcycles in the month of April 2023 as against 62,155 motorcycles sold during the same month in the previous financial year, resulting in an 18% YoY growth. The OEM exported 4,255 motorcycles during the month as compared to 8,303 during the same period last year, spelling a 49% decline YoY.
B Govindarajan, CEO, Royal Enfield said, “We closed FY23 on a high note and have begun FY24 on a confident footing. To further up the ante and cement our position as a global motorcycling brand from India, we recently launched our Hunter 350 and the Scram 411 in the USA and LatAm markets.”
Suzuki Motorcycle India registered overall sales of 88,731 units in April 2023, with the domestic market accounting for 67,259 units and exports accounting for 21,472 units. This was 23.3% higher than a year before, said the company. Kenichi Umeda, Managing Director, Suzuki Motorcycle India, said apart from the sales growth, “April 2023 proved to be quite progressive for the company as we successfully achieved the seven millionth production milestone since the origin of the company in 2006.”
HMSI’s total sales in April 2023 stood at 374,747 units, including 338,289 units in the domestic market. The company also reported exports of 36,458 units last month.
Bajaj Motors made a strong comeback posting a 95% YoY growth in April 2023. Against 93,233 two-wheeler units it had sold in April 2022, the OEM sold 181,828 units last month. Exports, however, fell to 106,157 units against 188,478 units it had exported in April 2022, resulting in a 44% YoY decline. Overall, it grew 2% YoY.
Meanwhile, Hero MotoCorp’s motorcycle sales dropped by 6% YoY to 3.68 lakh units in April 2023. However, the launch of the Xoom scooter seems to be working for the OEM as its scooter sales posted 5% YoY growth to 27,277 units in the same month. Overall, the company's domestic sales fell 3% YoY to 3.86 lakh units, whereas its exports fell 51% YoY to 9,923 units.
Mixed Bag For CVs
While the PV market continues to grow as the chip crisis improves with each passing day, the same cannot be said for the CV segment. Tata Motors, for example, posted a 28% drop YoY in its CV business with domestic sales of 21,507 units as against 29,880 units in the same time last year.
VE Commercial Vehicles recorded sales of 6,567 units, including 6,399 units of Eicher brand and 168 units of Volvo brand in April 2023 as compared to 5,525 units in April 2022, thus recording a growth of 18.9% YoY.
Posting a YOY growth of 10%, commercial vehicle maker Ashok Leyland sold a total of 12,974 units in April 2023, including exports. Of the total sales, domestic sales stood at 12,366 units, as against 11,197 units it had sold in April 2022.
In the CV segment, M&M grew by 16.25% YoY last month to sell 20,231 units, up from the 17,402 units it had sold in the same time last year. The company recently launched the Bolero Maxx Pik-up in the 2-3.5 T category. During the launch the company said it had a 60% market share in the category in FY23.
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