Demonetisation rocked us in the beginning of November and the automotive industry was one of the biggest casualties of this landmark decision. The automotive industry that aimed to cash in on the festive demand suffered setbacks. While deliveries for previous bookings kept the sales figures afloat, the real effects of demonetisation will be seen in December.
In spite of the cash curb, Maruti Suzuki displayed a strong performance. With brands like Hyundai and Mahindra taking a hit, Maruti registered 52 per cent sales for November 2016. The Alto topped rankings at 23,320 cars sold. Five more Marutis – Dzire, WagonR, Swift, Baleno and Celerio also featured in the top ten sellers for November.
Hyundai and Mahindra sales dropped by over 30 per cent as compared to the November sales in 2015. On the other hand, Tata’s new budget hatchback, the Tiago crossed 6,000 sales for the second month consecutively. The Tiago is spearheading Tata’s fight into re-establishing itself as a major force in the Indian automotive market. With 12,736 cars sold in November, Tata has edged past Mahindra (12,706 units) to claim the third spot on the overall sales leader-board.
With the lack of liquidity, luxury car sales have taken the biggest hit. It seems that budget premium cars like C-segment sedans, premium hatchbacks and crossovers have also bore the brunt. Elite i20 sales have dropped 25 per cent and the Vitara Brezza sales are below 6,000.
