Revival signs: Maruti, Honda report good sales in Nov

Showing signs of revival in auto industry, major car makers Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, Honda and Toyota today reported good sales for November even as some others faced sluggish demand due to weak consumer sentiment.
General Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra and Ford India recorded decline in November sales.
Country's largest car maker Maruti Suzuki said its domestic sales in the month stood at 1,00,024 units, up 17 per cent from 85,510 units in November last year.
Sales in the compact segment comprising Swift, Estilo, Ritz and Dzire rose by 13.8 per cent to 37,339 units in November as against 32,804 units in the same month last year.

Sales of mid-sized sedan Ciaz, which was launched in October, stood at 5,232 units. The company had sold 200 units of SX4 sedan in November 2013.
Sales of vans -- Omni and Eeco-- rose by 52.1 per cent each to 12,203 units in November this as compared to 8,021 units in the same month of previous year.

Rival Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) sold 35,511 units last month in the domestic market as compared to 33,501 units in November 2013, up 6 per cent.
HMIL Senior Vice President (Sales and Marketing) Rakesh Srivastava said strong investment of launching four new products in a year's time has resulted in the growth.

"Today Hyundai has one of the youngest product portfolio led by Elite i20 which has reached a landmark number of 10,500 units making it the top seller amongst strong Hyundai brands," he added.
Honda Cars India reported 64 per cent increase in domestic sales in November at 15,263 units as against 9,332 units in the same month last year.
"We continue to witness strong demand for all our products across markets. We are aggressively expanding our dealer network to reach out to more customers," HCIL Senior Vice-President (Marketing & Sales) Jnaneswar Sen said.
Mahindra & Mahindra's domestic sales declined by 11 per cent to 32,100 units last month as against 36,261 units a year earlier.

"The auto industry continues its sluggish demand on the back of factors such as low consumer sentiment and high interest rates," M&M Chief Executive Automotive Division and International Operations (AFS) Pravin Shah said.
The reducing international crude prices and the subsequent lowering of fuel prices should help in the revival of demand in the coming months, he added.
"We also hope that the current excise duty rates will be extended beyond end of December to get much needed recovery for the auto industry," Shah said.
Maruti Suzuki India, Hyundai and Mahindra had failed to register significant sales growth in October despite the festival season which had been one of the best periods for vehicle sales in the country in the past.