Indian Car Sales Figures - January 2014

January 2014 Sales Figures - Pan India

·         Jan’14 sales figures is surely gonna be shielded from the upcoming Auto Expo. It is astonishing to observe the investments made by the Auto companies in new products during the downturn – a clear sign on how the newer products would define the future. With over 70 new launches planned in all segments, the Indian Auto Expo would be emerge to be one of the most important Auto Exhibitions in the world!

·         January 2014 continued the trend and disappointed us in overall. However, the Japanese ruled the roost (name Honda, Maruti Suzuki & Nissan) and had a good run in the first month of the year.

·         The current scenario has taught an important lesson to all automobile manufacturers – Agility and Product offensive is the key to success. OEM who have adapted to the aforementioned philosophy would sail the tide successfully – Honda exactly showed how it needs to be done! Firstly a diesel engine for Indian market in Amaze and then an Amazing price for the Diesel City – rightly a breakthrough combination for the Japanese major. City clearly emerges the leader of the segment and overtakes the rival Verna with a huge margin. Need to appreciate the readiness of Honda in terms of supplying over 7k City’s within first month. Amaze maintains the momentum – and delivers 7398 units in Jan’14 as well. The compact Sedan market is surely on fire – expect more traction in the segment with new launches (name Zest by Tata, Xcent by Hyundai, Figo Sedan by Ford).

·         Maruti makes no mistake to become the market leader again. It’ll also emerge as the technology leader with the launch of ‘Celerio’ – Automated Manual Transmissions would be firstly bought on the Indian soil with this crucial launch. The eZdrive is being promoted aggressively and is surely catching the fancy of the urbane Indian driver who wants the luxury of an automatic at an entry-level price. Swift & Dzire twins maintain the good run and seems uncatchable by any competition. Ertiga still seems shaky and would have to see how successful it would be in coming months. Ritz is slowly losing its sheen and with Celerio pitching in would deteriorate further.

·         Hyundai has left no stone unturned in terms of making the ‘Grand i10’ a GRAND success. Over 50k units shipped within the first 6 months of its launch is no small feat! Eon jumps back to over 7k figures and puts an impressive show. Verna is successful in posting 3803 nos – would be interesting to see the rivalry heating up with the launch of Diesel City! i10 & i20 need to buckle up as it is losing numbers to Grand.

·         Another segment which had a great run in Jan’14 was entry level SUV – right from Ecosport to Scorpio, Duster to Terrano posted positive numbers. Happy to see the segment gaining steadily. Duster + Terrano combinedly delivers over 6k units! XUV crossed 3.5k mark after 12 longgg months! Ecosport produced ~3.9k numbers for Ford – need to focus more on Domestic demand rather than exports.

·         Tata sees some traction in Nano with the launch of Twist and posts an offtake of 2250 units.

·         Fiat has a surprise run – Punto posts over 1k offtake after 22 months. Surely has more to offer considering the hatcback’s potential. Linea couldn’t gain much on its stripped down variant and has a lackluster performance.

Game changing production focused Cars to be expected at the 2014 Auto Expo –

Ø  Tata

o   Zest (new compact sedan)

o   Bolt (new hatchback)

Ø  Datsun

o   Go hatchback

Ø  Honda

o   Mobilio

o   New Jazz

Ø  Hyundai

o   Xcent

Ø  GM

o   Adra (compact SUV)

Ø  Ford

o   New Fiesta

o   New Figo Sedan

Ø  Bajaj

o   RE60 based city car

Ø  Maruti

o   Celerio

o   Ciaz sedan

Ø  Fiat

o   Punto Cross (Avventura)

Refresh showcase planned for Beat, Sunny, Corolla, Santa Fe, Fluence, Koleos.

Indian Car Sales Figures - December 2013

December 2013 Sales Figures - Pan India

Indian Car Sales Figures - November 2013

November 2013 Sales Figures - Pan India

Highlights –

November was nothing but ‘From Diwali to Diwala’ situation for all Automobile OEMs. While the first week of the month saw tremendous traction in terms of retails, the month has particularly been disappointing in terms of offtake. Majority of the customers have surely postponed their purchase decision expecting hefty discounts at year-end. December will be the most crucial month of the year for the Auto Industry – it is gonna decide the longevity of the slowdown in Auto sales and will clearly signal recovery/degrowth.

·       *Country’s biggest automaker – Maruti Suzuki witnessed 5.9% degrowth YOY in domestic offtake and has particularly lost in Wagon R, Ertiga & Swift sales. The Wagon-R could not ‘sting’ competition with its offering Stingray. However, Alto emerged strong in the month and was able to touch 23k mark.

·         There has been a tremendous spurt in the marketing budgets of Maruti – it clearly signifies that the industry is in turbulent times when the Market Leader has to shell out hefty bucks for promotions. Never in my life have I seen Maruti advertising so much!

·      * The Korean major cannot celebrate its ‘grand’ success due to the cannibalization woes. While the OEM has been commendable to sync its production levels of i10 grand to match the demand – the steep decline in i10 & i20 sales has been unwelcoming. Verna too is slowly saturating – need to uplift the brand.  Surprisingly Santa Fe registers its best offtake post July’12!

·        * Ford continues its dream run – but the focus on the Indian market requirement has been disappointing. It is a shame that a customer has to wait upto 1 year for a car even as worth as Ecosport. Ford needs to realize that form is temporary in today’s volatile market and should avail as many cars in market as possible to gain market share. Figo & Fiesta continue their sorry performance in Nov’13.

·         *Honda’s performance makes us forget the market scenario and forces to think on how a right product at the right price and at the right time can be instrumental for the company’s success. ‘Amaze’ing, isn’t it J

·     *GM announces the re-incarnation of Tavera with a bang – the figures easily shoots to ~1.3k figures. However, its MPV sibling Enjoy faces the heat and drops to below 1.5k units.

 ·         The Indian brands – M&M and Tata face the fiercest brunt. New products from their stable seems to be the only respite for these brands.

A look at the top 20 cars of the month –

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The next step would be to blend it with a variety of options of Frames & Room Views - the one which matches of your own and here is how it looks with mine -

The portal was launched pre-Diwali and has already attracted buyers from all parts of the country. Many of its customers are happy to have purchased from the portal and are naming themselves as Art Feurig's! 

The niche online portal has all the right ingredients to make it big in the Home Decor segment and we wish it to reach as many homes it can :)

You can explore the site at - http://artfeurig.com/

Indian Car Sales Figures - October 2013

Happy Diwali to all the readers! May the festival of lights fill your home with Happiness, Joy, Prosperity & Never Ending Success!

October 2013 Sales Figures - Pan India

Highlights –

·         No festive cheer for the Automotive industry! Durga Puja, Dusshera & even Diwali couldn't lighten up the situation. The monstrous marketing spends, incessant TV campaigns and on-ground activation blitzkrieg weren't able to pull customers into the showrooms. It seems that the normal consumer is busy worrying about the rise in inflation, 'sky-rocketing onion prices', fuel price irrationality and increasing interest rates. As a matter of fact, even on Dhanteras which is said to be the most auspicious day for buying gold saw 50% less than expected gold sale. However, on the other side Apple saw remarkable response and never-ending queue for its newly launched iPhone 5C & 5S. Now, that's irony! The industry is now expected to grow only post 2014 general elections - that's a long way to go!!! Till then the industry will have to fight for the sale of every unit.  

·        October as a month was flat - though many OEMs saw sequential growth, YOY growth was majorly on a negative side. Maruti nearly touched the 1 Lakh mark (96062 domestic nos), Hyundai crossed the 36k mark after 18 months (the last time it had achieved the feat was Mar 2012!), M&M jump past the 20k offtake after 4 longg months and even Toyota had its best offtake in 6 months. Nissan with the help of Terrano crossed the 4k mark as well. 

·        November is expected to be bleak as consumers would wait for the Discounts-driven December. No immediate launches seen by the industry - all OEMs are gearing up for the upcoming Auto Expo in Feb 2014. Some of the biggest launches of the next 2 years would be showcased in the Expo.  

·        The best performers of October were no surprise - Amaze, Grand i10 & Ecosport. For the first time Honda had a product which would single-handedly touch 10k mark. The entry level sedan space has surprised us all with the sheer volumes it is able to generate - even with Amaze clocking 9564 nos, Maruti had its Dzire 'fulfilled' with 17211 offtake! Kudos to Honda for assessing the segment well and launch a breakthrough product. Also appreciate the OEM for ramping up the production accordingly and catering to the requirement. Grand i10 jumps to no.5 spot just within 3 months of it launch! Hyundai has surely made its entry a "GRRRAAAAND" one. Surprisingly its direct competition Swift still clocked 19047 units (the highest in past 7 months!) - that's the beauty of Indian auto industry. Ecosport is easily clocking over 5k figure offtake - whereas it can easily target 10k. Ford's focus on exports has made the brand less available in the Indian market - in my opinion it's a wrong move. Novelty seems to be the trend of the industry currently - don't forget XUV was offered on a lottery a year back and now the plight is otherwise.   

·         Maruti Suzuki reports the comeback of the LUV Ertiga - with over 7k units it marks is comeback in the MUV space. However, it seems to be a compensation of September's performance where it had a feeble offtake of 2657 nos. The petrol v/s diesel distribution of MS brands is as mentioned -

·         Its Grand Masti time for Hyundai! - but the brand seems more to cannibalize the in-house i10 rather than the competition. There is nothing exemplary in October by Hyundai's other offerings. The trend to notice in Diesel vs Petrol distribution - Grand i10 Petrol sells more than its diesel sibling!

·         Toyota proves its dominance in the MUV segment yet again. The workhorse Innova emerges loyal to its Japanese parent and the facelift has surely up the demand. Fortuner plays its part well and successfully garners ~1600 volumes. Etios & Liva performances seem the only bothering.

·         M&M saw a tremendous growth in Scorpio & Bolero - thanks for the good response in the stronghold North Indian market. Bolero regains its 10k run and Scorpio its 5k run. Even the Cheetah-inspired SUV performs well. However, the other brands in the kitty has given a tough time for the Indian UV major.

A look at the top 20 cars of the month -

Indian Car Sales Figures - September 2013

September 2013 Sales Figures - Pan India

Highlights –

·         September had Lord Ganesha's blessing bestowing on the Indian Auto Industry (quite literally!). While it sparked signs of improvement, a lot is left to be desired for completely boosting the market sentiment. The offtake figures for September also signify the dealers readiness for the big festive month (Durga Puja / Dusshera / Navratri). The 'Shrraadh' period would also end in beginning of October and sales can fly off. October 2013 is surely gonna be a crucial month for the industry to sustain and grow over September. Maa Durga's kindness grace is required as well in Oct :)

source: moneylife.in

·         The biggest gainers in September were - Honda & Ford again . Kudos to these OEMs for taking the suggestion passed in Aug seriously -"sustainability can only be seen if they can have "MULTIPLE" hero products in the portfolio". Honda & Ford grew not only by Ecosport & Amaze volumes, but had other models contribute significantly as well (say Figo crossed 3.5k figure after 5 months, Fiesta classic crossed 700 nos after 6 months, City crossed 2k figure after 5 months!). 

·         Maruti Suzuki reported 51.5 percent growth in overall sales at 76,018 units as against 50,129 units in the same month last year. The ugly duckling gets revamped in August - i.e. the blue-eyed boy Wagon R has a makeover variant Stingray to support the brand. In overall Wagon

·         Its Grand Masti time for Hyundai! - the brand jumped to Numero 6 best selling car just within a month of its launch. Hyundai has done a wonderful job in able to assess the demand and manufacture over 8k Grand i10's withing a month! The brand also raked in more than 10k bookings in just 20 days! The craze of new cars is just not slowing down. An interesting statistics on how new launches were able to garner unbelievable fanfare and over the top demand -

source : HT

·         The i10 numbers were the biggest cause of concern for the Korean major. i10 figures fell ~50% in Sep v/s Aug 2013. As expected cannibalization did happen, though i20 was shielded from it. Verna's crossing 4k mark added to the brands consistent performance. 

·         Fortuner has been a brand that I've admired a lot since long - amazing to see how a over Rs. 25 Lakh brand can be so consistent in any market condition. I won't be surprised if it overtakes Liva nos someday (which costs 1/5th of a Fortuner!). Understanding India and its customers takes complexity to the next level :) Etios crosses the magical 3k figure after a longggg time. Innova is again successful in setting the benchmark high (its no easy to offtake 4650 Innova's when Ertiga could fare only 2657 nos!).

·         The rough ride eases for the Indian Auto majors - M&M and Tata in Sep when compared to Aug. Both the OEMs could post m-o-m growth but the y-o-y growth was still a disappointment (M&M degrew by over 20% and Tata by 41%). However, Bolero & Scorpio saves the day again for the no.1 UV manufacturer. Scorpio teaches a lesson or a two to the new entrant Duster - the 10 year old cult brand(Scorpio) easily outperforms the lone Renault performer.

·         Duster jumps to over 3.5k mark in Sep! - Kindly note that the Terrano shipments have still not started. Would be interesting to watch Duster's performance post Terrano's availability in the market. Fluence/Pulse/Scala does not give much to talk about. 

·         Honda continues to AMAZE us all. It has just expanded the compact sedan market - not to forget Dzire still continues its dominance in top 5 selling cars. And Amaze easily peeps into the 7th spot. 

 

In these tough times, a good month is what the industry requires - While most parts of the country would celebrate Dussehra Festival this October, lets hope the Industry STARTS delivering numbers and gives the boost for the coming festive season. 

A look at the top 20 cars of the month -

Indian Export Market - Automobiles

Indian Automobile Export Market - A look at the biggest Automobile Exporters in India

PREFACE: The ranking has been done based on the basis of percentage contribution of Export to the overall volumes. The background for considering the % contribution and not directly export volumes is to measure the OEM's dependency on Exports and hence the focus of these OEMs on the same. Surprisingly, a lot of OEM's have garnered higher volumes in Exports compared to Domestic Sales and the intention of making India as a Manufacturing & Export Hub is quiet evident from that. Also the OEMs having higher Export focus are based at locations near to ports giving it the required accessibility. The Domestic Sales / Export volume is from April to July 2013 (Quarter 1 of FY14).   

India has gained importance by global automakers not only as a growing market, but also a strategic location to export its products. "Made in India" vehicles have found global acceptance because of its value engineering, localization and its central location. Carlos Ghosn was once found commenting on the issue - "If we get a product right in India then the product is ready to be accepted elsewhere.. in growing markets". The cost of making a car in India is 15-20% lower than any developed / even developing markets. India made products are also rebadged for various international markets. Now, strong export lineup is also considered as an advantage to offset the depreciating rupee!  

Passenger Cars –

·         Nissan emerges as the OEM with the highest dependency on Export. No wonder the OEM is undeterred with its poor performance in the Indian market, as it has been able to successfully expand its Export portfolio - kindly note that Micra is made ONLY in India for global markets. Also Sunny contributes significantly to the OEM. In the coming times, Datsun brand would also be based in India and would be exported to various countries - Do remember that Datsun's world premiere was done in India and for a reason!   

Source: ET

·         Hyundai has always set benchmarks in Exports - It is the country's largest car exporter and in 2010 touched the milestone of exporting over 10 Lakh cars! No wonder, "Made in India" Hyundai cars is being exported to over 120 countries! Also over 50% of its production is being exported.

Source: Business Line

·         Ford also has recently re-aligned its strategy to accelerate the export volumes to adapt to the changing Indian market conditions and strong global demand for compact cars and SUVs. With addition of Ecosport in its portfolio, not only making it a success in India - but also exporting the model to various other developing countries is also its part of the strategy. Ford is also looking at integrating India with its global manufacturing network as part of its "One Ford" strategy. 

·         VW India has been exporting cars since Pune last year as fully built units to markets such as South Africa, Srilanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Malaysia and LHD version of the Vento to West Asia.

·         Who can forget Toyota's big plans to the Indian made Etios / Liva for the global markets. The OEM currently exports to Indonesia & South Africa. The India-made Etios though didn't perform as it was expected in India - but is the 4th best selling car in South Africa!

·         Renault India exports the Duster to RHD markets - UK and Ireland. 

·         Maruti - is aiming to overtake Hyundai in exports. By 2020, Maruti is planning to invest Rs. 18,000 crore in new factories to support its expansion and export strategy. 

Despite current market challenges and macroeconomic factors, Export is the strategy being used by various OEMs to shield itself from the economic slowdown. 

A look at the India made products which are the best-sellers in international markets -

Source: HT

A glance at the Export volumes in Commercial Vehicles, Two & Three Wheelers –

*Force Motors volumes have been considered separately as its domestic numbers are nil.