Mahindra & Mahindra, India’s third largest automaker has reported a sales drop for the month of July. Honda Cars India has overtaken the Indian company in the passenger vehicle segment. The Japanese have been able to do so because of their revived Jazz and new Mobilio. But, M&M sales are expected to pick up once they launch their new mini-SUV and upgraded versions of their Bolero.
Though there is a decrease in domestic sales numbers, exports have hiked up 41% and stood at 3,565 units for the month of July. Domestic sales stand at 31,087 which are around 6% lower than last year numbers of the same month. Pravin Shah, President and Chief Executive of M&M reacted to the situation, “While the auto industry is currently seeing muted growth, we do believe that the launch of some exciting new products will help it turn the tide. In addition, with the advent of a good monsoon till date and reduction in fuel prices, we expect sentiments to improve, leading to overall growth in auto sales. At Mahindra we continue to be excited with our portfolio of products as well as our upcoming launches."
It is clear that the company is hoping that its new launches will improve the situation and most of the time it does. When XUV 500 was launched, M&M witnessed a surge in its sales and similar was the case with the new Scorpio. The company posted good numbers in passenger vehicle segment at the start of the second quarter of 2015 but now customers are waiting for upgraded cars and new launches before they buy a new Mahindra. But, the biggest Indian SUV maker is not going to have it easy. Hyundai’s new Creta has received 23,000 bookings till now and surely we are going to see a large portion of those bookings on the road. M&M has to be price effective with its mini-SUV if it wants to compete against Creta.
