Maruti Suzuki festive sales surge past 80,000 units after GST rate cut

The festival season has lit up India’s auto market, and no one feels it more than Maruti Suzuki. Since the start of Navratra, the country’s largest carmaker has already clocked more that 80,000 retail sales. The timing couldn’t have been more significant, with the GST 2.0 regime kicking in earlier this week, lowering taxes on vehicles and nudging hesitant buyers to make the leap.

For Indian car buyers, this festive period has become the perfect storm of good news. A GST reduction, bringing rates down to 18 per cent and 40 per cent from the earlier 28 - 31 per cent and 43 - 50 per cent, was the signal many were waiting for. The carmaker calls it “a golden opportunity" for customers to upgrade, and the numbers back him up. Inquiries have nearly doubled to 80,000 per day, against the usual 40,000 - 45,000, while bookings are touching 18,000 per day.

Small cars, big impact

Interestingly, it’s the smaller cars, the backbone of India’s passenger vehicle marke, —that are stealing the spotlight. Maruti Suzuki stated that the company is witnessing very good traction in the small cars segment. In the entry-level segment, booking growth is 50 per cent across India. Beyond the big metros, the trend is even stronger, with bookings in smaller towns and rural markets doubling compared to normal times.

Waiting periods around the corner

The rush has been so strong that Maruti Suzuki may soon struggle to keep pace with certain variants. Popular models like the Brezza, Dzire, and Baleno are attracting brisk demand. However, Maruti Suzuki pointed that in some of the variants, the company may not be able to supply after maybe four-five days. Nonetheless, the situation currently is under control. With production unable to ramp up overnight, the company advised customers to finalise financing quickly if they wish to take deliveries within the festive season. Maruti had already reported 30,000 retail sales on the first day of Navaratri, but the pace since has been extraordinary.

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