Market leader Maruti Suzuki and Honda Cars posted double-digit growth in domestic sales last month compared with a year earlier, while the increase for Hyundai Motors was marginal. On the other hand, Mahindra & Mahindra saw a decline of 7% in sales of passenger vehicles in December, which is considered to be a relatively slower month for the auto industry as people prefer to buy vehicles registered in the new year.
Maruti Suzuki India sold more than 1.18 lakh passenger vehicles in the country during the last month, a growth of 11.4% from the more than 1.06 lakh units sold in December 2016. The company also sold in excess of 700 units of its light commercial vehicle Super Carry and exported 10,780 vehicles, taking the total sales in December 2017 to more than 1.30 lakh units, a growth of 10.3% year-on-year. However, the exports declined by a little over 6% from 11,494 units.
In a statement, the company said sales of mini segment cars, which include the Alto and the WagonR, grew 2% to 32,146 units during December, while sales of its mid-sized sedan Ciaz declined by almost 36% to 2,382. Sales of compact vehicles (Swift, Ritz, Celerio, Ignis, Baleno, Dzire and Tour S) grew 23% to 53,336 units, while those of utility vehicles (Gypsy, Ertiga, Vitara Brezza and S-Cross) rose 19.9% to 19,276 units. Sales of vans (Omni and Eeco) increased by 23.8% to 11,420 units in the last month.
December sales for Hyundai Motor India, which recorded its highest annual domestic sales in 2017, rose marginally. It sold 40,158 vehicles in December 2017, compared with 40,057 units in the year-earlier period.
“The calendar year 2017 has been a year of performance ... registering highest-ever domestic volume of 5,27,320 units, a growth of 5.4%,” helped by the positive momentum in urban and rural retail sales, along with strong after-sales service and low-cost of ownership, YK Koo, MD & CEO, Hyundai Motor India said. Its exports rose 32.9% to 22,741 units in the month, taking total monthly sales to 62,899, a growth of 10%. The Hindu News
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