However, with the combined sales of domestic passenger vehicles falling 2.6 per cent to 192,852 units because of a poor show by Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), automakers are only cautiously optimistic of better sales in the festive period. The overall offtake of two-wheelers, on the other hand, increased by 23 per cent to 1.1 million units.
For Maruti Suzuki, exports did the trick. While its domestic sales were up 1.8 per cent to 90,399 units last month, exports surged a 180 per cent to 14,565 units. The strong rebound in shipments abroad raised the total sales for the company, up 11.7 per cent to 104,964 units. Even conceding that last September's exports were hit by labour unrest, the sales are still 50 per cent more than the company's average exports of around 10,000 vehicles a month. (2-WHEELERS IN HIGH GEAR)
Sales for the company grew 14.5 per cent in the passenger car segment (cars and sedans) in the domestic market but tepid demand in the utility vehicle segment (Gypsy & Ertiga), earlier a growth driver, dragged down overall domestic growth to 1.8 per cent. The market responded positively to the development, with Maruti Suzuki shares closing at Rs 1,380, up 1.62 per cent, on the BSE exchange.
M&M also hopes for higher offtake during festivals, even though its sales fell 20.5 per cent last month. However, there was no signal of any improvement from Tata Motors, which saw volumes slip 40 per cent to 12,879 units.
Hyundai Motor India recorded a marginal dip of 0.8 per cent, selling 30,601 units but is cautiously optimistic. "We expect the market challenges to continue and have cautious optimism for the upcoming festive season," said Rakesh Srivastava, senior vice-president (sales & marketing), Hyundai Motor India.