Although the semi-conductor scarcity has not vanished as miraculously as the industry would have anticipated, it appears that the players have found a way to work around it. Except for Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai Motor India, and MG Motors, all other players in this space reported positive growth in March 2021.
The leading Indian carmaker, Maruti Suzuki India’s domestic sales have also declined by more than 8% to 1,33,861 vehicles compared to 1,46,203 cars sold in March 2021. However, it posted a growth of almost 3% in FY22, with sales of 1,331,558 units compared to 1,293,840 units in FY21.
Hyundai reported a 15.2% drop in sales YoY with retails of 44,600 units in March 2022 compared to 52,600 units in the same time last year. On the other hand, the company recorded a growth of 2.1% in FY22 with retails of 4,81,500 units against 4,71,535 units in FY21.
The SAIC owned MG Motors reported degrowth of 14.5% YoY by retailing 4,721 units in March 2022. Meanwhile, the carmaker stated that the fourth quarter sales of FY22 have seen a jump of 69% compared to the previous quarter.
The Czech carmaker Skoda Auto India has also clocked its highest ever monthly sales volume of 5,608 vehicles, close to a four-fold increase compared to March 2021 with retails of 1,159 units. It also recorded the highest quarterly sales, closing the fourth quarter, retailing 13,120 units compared to 3,016 units in Q4FY21, increasing by 335%.
Toyota Kirloskar Motor clocked a 14% growth on a YoY basis in March 2022 by selling 17,131 units against 15,001 units in the same month the previous year. This has also been its highest ever domestic sales for the company in a month since July 2017. While in FY22, the company registered a 58% growth by clocking sales of 123,770 units, compared to 78,262 units clocked in FY21.
Nissan India’s sales doubled in FY22 with 37,678 units compared to 18,884 units in the previous fiscal year. While on the other hand, it reported a downfall of 25% in terms of monthly sales by retailing 3,007 units in March 2022.
Honda, too reported an upward growth of 4.3% in FY22 by retailing 85,609 units in the fiscal as compared to 82,074 units during FY21.
The Korean carmaker, Kia India, also registered a growth of 18.44 % YoY with retails of 22,622 units in March 2022. It also posted the highest quarterly sales in Q4FY22, selling 60,062 units, a growth of 9.5% compared to Q4FY21.
Mahindra and Mahindra reported a 65% growth on a YoY basis in March 2022 with retails of 27,603 units, compared to 16,700 units in March last year. The company reported retail sales of 2,25,895 units in FY22, translating to a 44% growth compared to the previous fiscal which closed with 1,57,216 units sales.
With 43% YoY growth, Tata Motors sold 42,293 units in March 2022, while in the complete fiscal it saw an increase of 67% over FY21, retailing 3,70,372 units.
However, the big players haven’t been so lucky when it comes to sales. Although the industry has seen soaring demand for PVs due to the pandemic, the chip shortage has played a spoilsport in production, resulting in an ever-increasing waiting period for popular models.
Two-wheelers
The new age EV maker, Ather Energy, reported sales of 2,591 units, a 120% rise compared to March ’21.
While, the Chennai based TVS Motor reported a negative growth of 2.5% YoY, selling 1,96,956 units in March 22 compared to 2,02,155 units sold in March 21.
Royal Enfield also witnessed a marginal drop in sales in March 22 to 67,677 motorcycles against 66,058 motorcycles during the same period last year.
The Japanese two-wheeler maker, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India, reported 21.6% drop in sales in March 2022 on a YoY basis, to 3,09,549 units against 3,95,037 units in March 2021. Furthermore, it reported a negative growth of 2% in FY22 by closing the fiscal with sales of 37,99,680 units as compared to 38,67,817 units in the last fiscal.
Commercial Vehicles
The CV category yielded a mixed bag of results; while the farm equipment segment saw a drop in sales, CVs saw positive momentum. Farm equipment manufacturer Escorts Agri Machinery reported a 19.2% decline in domestic tractor sales to 9,483 units in March 2022. The company had sold 11,730 units in March 2021.
Mahindra & Mahindra’s Farm Equipment also reported a downfall of 6% on a YoY retailing 28,112 units in the month under review compared to 29,817 units in March 2021. While for FY22, the company’s sales dropped by 2% to 3,37,052 units against 3,43,833 units sold in FY21.
Agricultural equipment makers claim that the demand for tractors is expected to increase during the course of next year, led by higher Rabi output and a good level of water reservoirs. Besides, the increased Union Budget allocations to rural and agri sectors, favourable crop prices, and the initial positive forecast of the 2022 monsoon season as normal support rural customer sentiments.
However, the commercial vehicle sector of M&M, including the 3W segment, posted a growth of 10.6%, with combined retail sales of 23,880 units in March 2022 as compared to 21,577 units in March 2021. In FY22, the company’s sales grew by 17.2% to 2,07,196 units against 1,76,684 units in the previous year.
Similarly, Ashok Leyland posted an 18% YoY growth by retailing 18,556 units in March 2022 compared to 15,761 units in March last year. Additionally, it posted a 27% growth in sales in FY22 by retailing 1,17,312 units, compared to 92,714 units in FY21.
Volvo Eicher group has reported sales of 8,581 units, including 222 units from the Volvo brand in March 2022, compared to 6,870 units in March 2021, resulting in 25% growth on a YoY basis. In FY22, the group sold 55,824 units, a 38.2% growth over 40,188 units sold in the previous fiscal.
On the other hand, TVS in the 3W segment saw a 1.3% drop in sales YoY to 15,036 units in March 2022 as against 15,246 units in the same previous year.