Auto majors post mixed results

Maruti Suzuki India on Monday reported 10.7 per cent decline in its total sales at 92,140 units in November as against 1,03,200 units in the same month last year.

Domestic sales during the month stood at 85,510 units, down 5.9 per cent from 90,882 units in November last year, Maruti Suzuki India said in a statement.

Sales of mini passenger cars, including M800, Alto, A-Star and WagonR grew by 3.7 per cent at 38,040 units as against 36,679 units last year.

MSI said during the month, sales of its compact cars comprising Swift, Estilo and Ritz were at 18,122 units as against 23,849 units in the year-ago month, down 24 per cent.

Sales of compact sedan Dzire grew by 13.2 per cent to 15,286 units as against 13,502 units in November last year, the company said.

Mid-sized sedan SX4 saw sales decline by 71.1 per cent to just 200 units in November as compared to 692 units last year, while premium sedan Kizashi sold just one unit.

Sales of utility vehicles, including Ertiga, Grand Virara and Gypsy stood at 5,840 units as against 7,439 units, down 21.5 per cent.

Van sales, consisting of Omni and Eeco were at 8,021 units as compared to 8,650 units last year, down 7.3 per cent, it said.

Exports in November this year were down 46.2 per cent to 6,630 units from 12,318 units in the same month last year, the company said.

. . .

Hyundai Motor India Ltd on Monday reported a 10.9 per cent in its total sales in November at 49,681 units as against 55,762 units in the same month last year.

The company's domestic sales were down 3.6 per cent at 33,501 units during the month from 34,751 units in November 2012, Hyundai Motor India Ltd said in a statement.

Exports during the month were down 22.99 per cent to 16,180 units from 21,011 units in the same month last year, it added.

Commenting on the sales, HMIL Senior Vice-President, Sales and Marketing, Rakesh Srivastava, said: "After the festival season, market has been sluggish due to unfavourable macro-economic factors and the low market sentiments resulting lower customer enquiries."

. . .

General Motors India on Monday reported 14.14 per cent decline in sales at 6,214 units in November 2013.

The company had sold 7,238 units in the same month of 2012, GM India said in a statement.

Last month's sales included 2,151 units of Beat, 1,206 units of multi-purpose vehicle Enjoy and 1,347 units of Tavera, it added.

Commenting on sales performance, GM India Vice-President P Balendran said: "As expected, the market has gone down drastically after a small spike during the festive season."

Overall, the market continues to remain sluggish due to unfavorable economic conditions and the company does not expect any improvement in the coming months, he added.

"Unless the government offers a stimulus package to the struggling automobile industry, the market is unlikely to see any upturn before a new government assumes office after elections next year," Balendran said.

. . .

Honda Cars India Ltd on Monday reported over two-and-half fold increase in its domestic sales in November 2013 at 9,332 units as against 3,711 units in the same month last year.

During the month, hatchback Brio clocked 1,712 units, while the compact sedan Amaze registered 7,598 units.

Sport utility vehicle CRV sold 22 units, the company said in a statement.

Exports during the month stood at 806 units. Commenting on the sales performance, HCIL Senior Vice-President (Marketing & Sales) Jnaneswar Sen said, "Led by strong demand for Honda Amaze, HCIL has experienced robust sales month after month since April 2013." He said with the upcoming launch of its all new 4th generation City sedan in January, the company is confident of doing well in 2014.

. . .

Ford India on Monday reported 19% cent growth in total sales at 12,050 units in November this year as compared to the same month last year.

The company had sold 10,155 units in November 2012, Ford India said in a statement.

Domestic sales grew by 33 per cent to 7,909 units in November this year as against 5,944 units in the same month last year, it added.

However, exports of the company remained steady in November at 4,141 units.

Ford India Executive Director (Marketing, Sales and Service) Vinay Piparsania said: "We are happy that we continue to register steady sales growth despite persistent market challenges as Indian consumers respond enthusiastically to our smart, fuel-efficient and dependable vehicles."