Toyota is slated to enter the sub-compact SUV space with the launch of Urban Cruiser later this month
The first quarter of the 2020-21 fiscal year proved to be detrimental for Indian businesses across different sectors, thanks to the novel coronavirus. The automotive sector too wasn’t aloof from its impact. Add to that, the industry had already been reeling with the effects of a slowdown in the economy prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.
With businesses shut for over two months as a result of the imposed lockdown countrywide due to the ongoing crisis, auto manufacturers had to bear huge losses in that period. Things started to improve gradually post the ‘Unlock’ period and makers slowly and steadily started all their operations after adhering to all safety norms suggested by the authorities.
Details of Sales
Toyota Kirloskar Motors (TKM) has registered a sale of 5,555 units for the month of August 2020 which is a growth of 3 percent when compared to the previous month. For the record, in July 2020, TKM had registered a total sale of 5,386 units which was a 40 percent increase from June 2020.
However, the YoY sales figure for TKM continues to remain low after a decline of 48 percent in domestic car sales when compared to the same month last year. In August 2019, TKM sold a total of 11,544 cars out of which 10,701 units were sold in the domestic market and 843 units of the Etios were exported to other nations. The Indo-Japanese auto collaboration has indicated the picture of the Indian auto market is improving gradually.
However, it has a long way to go to attain pre-COVID sales numbers. Earlier, TKM had ramped up production at its facility in Bidadi, Karnataka in order to meet the growing demands, as claimed by the company. According to the company’s Senior Vice President, Sales & Service, Naveen Soni, demands continued to rise for the month of August. However, the company also faced many challenges during this period with the number of Covid-19 infected cases on rise in Bangalore and rest of Karnataka.
Thanks to the ‘Toyota pull system’ of operations, the manufacturer could utilize its inventory in the best possible manner and achieve decent sales despite production constraints. Also more than half of the infected workers at TKM have returned to work which means production can gain pace in the coming days.
New Toyota Launch
Toyota recently launched the TRD Limited Edition of Fortuner last month. The company is now gearing up for the launch of its upcoming sub-4 metre compact SUV- Urban Cruiser which is slated to be launched later this month. The bookings of the SUV have already begun. The Toyota Urban Cruiser is essentially a rebadged form of Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza.
