Maruti Suzuki's Q4 profits slide 28% owing to low demand

Maruti Suzuki on Thursday announced that its March-quarter profit came down by 28% due to falling demand in the country which was hastened by the national lockdown in place since the third week of March.

While phased production only recently began at its Manesar plant and remains suspended at its plant in Gujarat, market value reported a net profit of ₹12.92 billion ($171.53 million) for the March quarter which is a significant fall from ₹17.96 billion in the same period a year earlier.

In the domestic market, sales fell to 360,428 units - down by 16%. Exports were at 102,171 vehicles, lower by 6% over the same period previous year.

In the full financial year FY20, the net profit stood at ₹5,651 crore, down by 24.7 per cent while net sales dipped by 13.7 per cent to ₹71,690 crore. The company sold a total of 15.6 lakh vehicles during the year, lower by 16 per cent over the same period previous year. Domestic sales totalled 14.6 lakh units, down by 16.7 per cent year-on-year while exports were at 1.02 lakh units.

RC Bhargava, Chairman MSIL, addressed mediapersons over video conferencing on Thursday afternoon and said that he does not expect demand to pick up anytime soon. "It is very difficult to make predictions at this time but if the country's GDP falls to 1% or 2%, car sales won't really see much impetus," he said.

Bhargava also said that challenges pertaining to maintaining supply chains persist because many component makers have their facilities in containment zones. He however remained optimistic about things looking up by the festive season. "I believe supply chains will improve gradually in the months to come. As for discounts, it would depend on market situations," he said. "New models will be introduced as has been programed from earlier. It cannot happen just like that."

(With inputs from ANI)