Auto sales on a decline; Maruti Suzuki loses its market share

 

The hike in fuel prices and the revised interest rates has slowed down the growth of the Indian automotive sector. Pundits at the start of 2011 had predicted the growth of the Indian auto market to be around 20% for this year, compared to more than 30% growth which we witnessed in 2010. Now, it seems that the growth is likely to be about 12-15%.  

Maruti Suzuki, the current market leader has lost a lot of market share in the last two months, due to the strike in the Manesar plant and even the fact that the manufacturer has stopped the production of the old Swift.  The production of the new Swift has begun but the wholesale delivery is yet to commence. Until the end of May 2011, Maruti Suzuki had approximately 46% of the market share, but in June 2011 this share reduced to 38%. The month of July hasn’t been that great for Maruti Suzuki since the company sold 66,504 units in the domestic market compared to 70,020 units (June 2011) and 93,519 units (May 2011).  Once, the Swift is launched in August, the Manesar-based automaker is likely to get back a huge chunk of market, which it lost in the last two months.

Manufacturers like Toyota, Volkswagen, Nissan, Skoda, and the three major Germans (Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi) have been the biggest gainers this year. Hyundai’s new Verna (13,183 units in the last three months) and Toyota’s Etios (12,509 units in the last three months) have been the new hot selling sedans averaging 4000+ units per month. Honda reduced the pricing of the City, which has bumped up the sedan’s July number to 4092 units despite being available only in the petrol version.