Carmakers run out of speed in urban markets; rural demand grows

Urban markets (metros and mini metros), which account for the bulk of the car sales, have started stagnating for leading manufacturers even as overall sales remain positive, supported by growing rural demand.

Market leader Maruti Suzuki and its nearest competitor, Hyundai, among others, are seeing a flat performance in urban markets, which account for over two-thirds of sales.  In recent years, urban markets used to see a single high-digit growth rate. 

“The company’s urban growth so far is flat and rural markets are showing high growth, in fact close to 13 per cent. We have had a third consecutive good