Hyundai Motor India reports exports at 10,004 units last month. Domestic sales growth stands at 4.1 pct over 33,405 units sold in Jan 2014. Exports are down 16.7 pct from 12,008 units sold in January 2014. Hyundai Motor India cumulative sales for January 2015 stand at 44,784 units, down from 45,413 units sold in January 2014, equating to 1.4 pct sales decline.
Rakesh Srivastava, Sr. VP- Sales and Marketing, HMIL says Hyundai sales of 34,780 units in the domestic market marks growth of 7 pct over last month. Growth is registered on momentum built by new Elite i20, Grand and Eon despite challenges from increased cost of ownership as excise duty concessions were withdrawn at 2014 end.
For sustained Indian auto industry growth, the need of the hour is interest rate reduction and rationalisation of taxes so the number of first time buyers increases. On the product front, Hyundai Verna facelift is the first launch scheduled by the auto manufacturer in 2015. A dealership enquiry confirms a 16th February launch. Test drive vehicle are not available at dealerships as of now, and booking amount across showrooms varies from Rs 10,000 – Rs 25,000.
Hyundai India has no doubt maintained steady sales growth despite a difficult Indian market, ending 2014 with record sales at over 4.10 lakh units for a market share of 21.6 pct. As it sets sight on the 5 lakh sales mark, Hyundai is turning to new products and facelifts. Following Hyundai Verna facelift launch this month, Hyundai will mark its entry in a new segment with the i20 crossover launch next.
In Q3 2014, Hyundai Motor India stopped exports to Europe with production for these markets shifting to Turkey and Czech Republic. It resulted in about 25 pct export reduction from the Chennai plant for 2014. Export focus has been concentrated on Australia, Latin America, West Asia, and Asia from India. Chennai plant annual production stands at 6.8 lakh units, and will be better utilised to meet growing domestic market demand. i20 and i10 for Europe are now made in Turkey and Czech Republic.
With another compact SUV launch scheduled for launch later in 2015, Hyundai Motor India looks to grow as a challenger in the utility vehicle segment, while concentrated on overall market share growth.
