Maruti, Hyundai, M&M domestic sales jump around 10% in May

Automobile majors Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Mahindra & Mahindra on Wednesday reported double digit growth in their passenger vehicles sales in May riding on new models and better consumer sentiments in expectations of a good monsoon.

Car market leader Maruti Suzuki India said its domestic sales rose 10.6 per cent in May to 1,13,162 units as against 1,02,359 units in the same month a year ago.

The company's sales were driven mainly by the compact segment comprising Swift, Estilo, Ritz, Dzire and Baleno, which grew 11 per cent to 46,554 units in the reported month as against 41,926 units in May last year.

Sales of utility vehicles including Gypsy, Grand Vitara, Ertiga, S-Cross and recently launched compact SUV Vitara Brezza jumped over two-fold to 13,596 units in May from 5,567 units in the corresponding month last year, the company said.

Mini segment cars, including Alto and WagonR, however, declined by 5.6 per cent to 33,105 units as compared with 35,062 units in the year-ago month.

Sales of mid-sized sedan Ciaz increased by 3.5 per cent to 5,188 units in May.

Rival Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) sold 41,351 units last month in the domestic market as compared with 37,450 units in May last year, up 10.41 per cent.

Commenting on the sales performance, HMIL senior vice-president (Sales and Marketing) Rakesh Srivastava said: "In market seeing challenges of stressed rural demand and uncertainty on diesel vehicles, Hyundai volumes grew by 10.4 per cent with sales of 41,351 units..."

He said the growth has been driven by strong performance of the three models Creta, Elite i20 and Grand i10 with heightened expectations of increase in demand on the predictions of good monsoon.

Utility vehicles major Mahindra & Mahindra reported 10 per cent increase in its domestic sales at 36,613 units last month compared with 33,369 units in May 2015.

Sales of passenger vehicles, including Scorpio, XUV500, Xylo, Bolero and Verito, also increased by 8 per cent at 19,635 units from 18,135 units in the same month last year, the company said.

M&M Chief Executive (auto division) Pravin Shah said: "The favourable monsoon season will definitely lead to improved buyer sentiment that would likely bring a buoyancy in overall demand across all segments of the automotive industry. Going forward, we expect that our wider portfolio will drive growth."

Commenting on the diesel ban issue, Shah said: "We hope that regulatory interventions will settle at the earliest to enable the auto industry to operate in a stable regime and contribute to the planned growth of India's GDP."

In the two-wheeler segment, market leader Hero MotoCorp reported a 2.32 per cent increase in sales at 5,83,117 units in May. It had sold 5,69,876 units in May 2015.

Market demand was expectedly subdued in May, due to heavy retail offtake that happened in April on account of marriage season and regional festivals in different parts of the country during that month, the company said.

"However, a good monsoon after two consecutive years of sub-normal rains could lead to a change in sentiments in the rural markets, which may lead to a positive turn-around in the industry in the second half of this fiscal," the company said.

Niche bike maker Royal Enfield reported 37 per cent jump in total motorcycle sales at 48,604 units as against 35,354 units sold in the same month last year. 

Photograph: Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com