Maruti and Toyota take the biggest hits due to GST

Car manufacturers have come out with price cuts post-GST, but the clouds of uncertainty surrounding the new tax regime had already begun to dampen the spirits for some time now. As a part of damage control measures, car makers had stopped despatching stocks to dealers and it seems that Maruti and Toyota were at the forefront.

Maruti Suzuki’s wholesale figures are down from 1.3 lakh units in May 2016 to 93,057 units in June, by about 30 per cent. Toyota despatched only 1,973 cars in June as against the 10,914 in the month of May – that´s almost an 80 per cent dip month on month. Hyundai’s sales dropped from 42,007 units to 37,562 units, down by just 10 per cent.

Surprisingly, Honda managed to despatch 12,804 units in June, almost 1,500 units more than it sold in the month of May, despite the lack of clarity in GST. For other manufacturers, the sales have shrunk marginally and the impact of GST has not been as big as it was being touted before its implementation.

With manufacturers slashing prices and the despatches back on schedule, the slow month of July might actually set the tone for the festive season, beginning in September. There´s a good likelihood that the year 2017-18 might set new records for annual car sales.