Maruti Suzuki sales in August impacted by electronic components shortage

Maruti Suzuki on Wednesday reported it had sold a total of 1.30 lakh units in the month of August with electronic components shortage being cited as a cause of concern . This figure includes 103,187 passenger vehicle (PV) units sold in the domestic market as well as 20,619 PV units exported, besides 4,305 PV units sold to other OEMs. Maruti Suzuki, the country's largest car maker, has seen sales rebound post the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic and its mini and compact cars are primarily responsible for bolstering prospects.

In a press statement, Maruti informed that its mini sub-segment, which has models like Alto and S-Presso, once again fared well and that 20.461 units of both cars were sold last month. The compact sub-segment which includes WagonR, Ignis, Swift, Baleno and Celerio, saw 45,577 units in sales. Year-on-year sales for this particular sub-segment, however, fell as the company had sold 61,956 units in August of 2020.

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Utility vehicles have also been a fertile sub-segment for Maruti. Cars like Vitara Brezza, Ertiga and XL6 continue to perform well and 24,337 units were sold in the month gone by, up from 21,030 units in the same month of last year.

Maruti also notes that while the electronics shortage had an impact on sales last month, sales in August of 2020 were affected by Covid-19-related factors. As such, comparisons between the two months of successive years are for reference purposes at best.

And the road ahead may be a mixed bag of sorts. While the upcoming festive period usually sees spectacular highs in sales, the issue of a global shoratge in semiconductors is likely to haunt Maruti as well. The company will reportedly cut production by around 40%. Rising input costs have also meant all Maruti models have seen a price hike effective from today (September 1).