Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Renault may announce rise in prices from April 1

Close on the heels of the car manufacturers like Mahindra, Honda and Tata Motors announcing a price hike from April 1, we have others like Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Renault looking to join the bandwagon. Yes, we do wish it is an April Fool’s joke but no, rising costs of fuel, manufacturing liabilities and more have led the car manufacturers to make this decision. 

It seems a bit confusing as less than a week ago we were talking about how these very companies had announced a price reduction across their lineup due to the Excise Duty the government had announced in the Interim Budget. Now we are back to square one as not long before, on January 1, 2014, the car manufacturers had decided to increase the prices of their products owing to the not-so-good condition of the Auto Industry. 

"We are actively contemplating increasing the prices of our vehicles in April due to increase in input and operational costs," Mahindra & Mahindra Chief Executive (Automotive Division) Pravin Shah told PTI. On similar lines, Speaking to Economic Times, Mayank Pareek, chief operating officer for marketing and sales at Maruti, said: "As we enter into a new fiscal year, we are closely looking at the cost pressures."

This price increase will for now be seen in small and mid-range passenger vehicles. Despite the Excise Duty cut, the sales have not shown much of action prompting the car companies to go back to their earlier plan. This is also the third time in six months that the car manufacturers will be raising prices. 

Source: IBT