Renault, Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and M&M end October on a high note; story not same for General Motors, Nissan and Ford

Indian automobile sector is buoyed with a strong start to the 2012 Diwali festivities, propelled with the help of interesting new car launches in the second half of October. Leading the pack is Renault India who managed a 40 fold growth in its unified vehicle sales, while established players like Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) came on top as well, during October 2012.

Renault, Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and M&M end October on a high note

Buoyed by immense popularity of its Duster compact Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV), Pulse hatch and Scala sedan, Renault India pulled off an incredible sales number of 6,790 units during October 2012. The French auto maker managed to sell just 173 units in the same month last year, as its product portfolio was limited to the premium sedan Fluence and Koleos SUV. According to a statement provided by Renault India, Duster SUV contributed to a major chunk of the sales witnessed by the company and stood at 5,406 units during October 2012. Further, the Renault Scala sedan, Pulse hatch, Fluence executive saloon and Koleos SUV accounted for sales of 737, 483, 107 and 57 units, respectively.

Expressing his delight on the sales recorded by company during October 2012, Marc Nassif, Managing Director (MD), Renault India Private Limited (RIPL), said, “We at Renault are very positive towards our entire product range and our growing dealer network has also added to our growth in sales and reaching the customers on a pan-India level."

Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL), the country's largest passenger car maker, wrapped off a fruitful October with a whopping number of 96,002 units as compared to 51,458 units sold during the same month last of 2011. Domestic sales of the company soared by 87 per cent, while its export business boomed by 72 per cent at 7,106 units. Expressing his views on the promise October 2012 brings for the company, Mayank Pareek, Managing Executive Officer (MEO), Marketing and Sales, MSIL, said, "We expect better sales in coming months as demand picks up in the second half due to festive sentiments and year-end buys.”

The country's second largest passenger car maker, Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL), finished October 2012 with an 8 per cent surge in vehicle sales, that stood at 35,778 units. The South Korean auto maker witnessed a solid 50 per cent growth at 23,007 units in its export volumes too, as against 15,321 units dispatched last year. Accordingly, the consolidated sales zoomed to 58,785 units in October 2012, as compared to 48,322 units registered during the same month last year.

Commenting on the positive start to Indian festivities for the company, Rakesh Srivastava, Vice President (VP), Marketing and Sales, HMIL, said, “The festivals brought in positive growth in domestic sales with resurgence in petrol variants. All models showed growth, with strong demand for Eon and Elantra. The challenge will be to convert customer interest into sales as the general inflationary trend, high fuel prices and interest rates are still keeping the sentiment muted.” Reportedly, HMIL pulled off astonishing sales of 50,146 units from its compact product portfolio comprising Eon, Santro, i10 and i20, while the sales of its Accent and Verna saloons stood at 7,895 units.

India's favourite Utility Vehicle (UV) maker, M&M declared an all time high jump in sales recorded during a single month, of about 44 per cent during October 2012. The UV maker registered sales of 26,932 units, which are said to be fuelled by the much popular Compact SUV Quanto, SUVs like XUV500 and Bolero along with its maiden sedan offering Verito. Speaking on the immense popularity of the company's products among domestic car enthusiasts, Pravin Shah, Chief Operating Officer (COO), M&M, said, “The festive demand was boosted by the 25-basis-point reduction in CRR (Cash Reserve Ratio) effected by RBI in the credit policy announced earlier. This, however, is not likely to result in a decrease in interest rates for corporate or retail credits and hence financing rates will remain high for auto industry customers, which is a cause for concern.”

Coming to top losers of October 2012 in the domestic auto market, the league is headed by General Motors, which lost its footing in the country as its sales dropped by 33 per cent as compared to last year. The Indian arms of American Ford Motor Co. and Japanese Motor Company also suffered similar fates, as their October sales plunged by 6 and 38 per cent, respectively. Commenting on the company's significant drop in sales, P. Balendran said, Vice President (VP), General Motors India Private Limited (GMIPL), said, "The market continues to remain subdued due to high interest rates and other negative market sentiments. The festival season also did not bring any excitement. Having said this, we are upbeat about the new Chevrolet Sail to be launched tomorrow and other new launches in the coming months."