Maruti Suzuki India sees fourth consecutive month of slow sales

At 135,128 units in domestic sales in October 2018, YoY growth is 0.6 percent. This performance comes on the back of slow growth for the past four months: July 2018: 152,427 / -0.6%; August 2018: 145,895 / -3.6%; and September 2018: 151,512 / 0.7%.

By Autocar Pro News Desk

01 Nov 2018

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Maruti Suzuki India sees fourth consecutive month of slow sales

Maruti Suzuki India, which set a blistering pace of sales in FY2018, is seeing sales moderate. The company has just announced its domestic sales for October 2018 which, at 135,128 units, constitute 0.6 percent year-on-year growth (October 2017: 135,128). This performance comes on the back of slow growth for the past four months: July 2018: 152,427 / -0.6%; August 2018: 145,895 / -3.6%; and September 2018: 151,512 / 0.7%.

It was expected that the ongoing festive season would bring additional footfalls into automobile showrooms across the country but it looks like consumer sentiment is muted, what with Dussehra sales too being tepid for most automakers.

In October 2018, Maruti Suzuki India sold a total of 101,516 units, up by 2.5 percent (October 2017: 99,077). Utility vehicles, where Maruti typically sees robust numbers, are down by 11.2 percent to 20,764 units (October 2017: 23,382).

While its entry-level Alto and Wagon-R went home to 32,835 buyers, up marginally by 1.1 percent (October 2017: 32,490), its quintet of compact cars – the Swift, Celerio, Ignis, Baleno and Dzire – clocked 64,789 units and grew by 3.7 percent (October 2017: 62,480). Interestingly, the Wagon-R is now slated for an update with the next-generation model around the corner and set for launch early next year. The car will rival the newly launched Hyundai Santro, which has taken all the eyeballs in the segment with its comeback in a strong avatar after a gap of four years.

Slowing sales have also impacted the new Ciaz. The premium sedan, which has been seeing a resurgence in sales numbers since its launch on August 20, sold 3,812 units in October, down 5.2 percent YoY (October 2017: 4,107). This comes on the back of sales of 7,002 units in August and 6,246 units in September.