April auto sales: From Maruti Suzuki to Kia, here's how companies performed

India's largest PV maker, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd sold a total of 1,60,529 units in April 2023, including domestic sales of 1,39,519 units, sales to other OEMs of 4,039 units, and exports of 16,971 units. The overall sales surged 6.5% from 1,50,661 in the corresponding period last year. The company says the shortage of electronic components had some impact on the production of vehicles.

In the mini-segment, comprising Alto and S-Presso, Maruti saw a significant decline, with only 14,110 units sold in April 2023, from 17,137 units sold in the year-ago period. The company also reported a 7.8% dip in exports at 16,971 units, as compared to 18,413 units exported in the year-ago period. Its sale to other OEMs also dipped to 4,039 in April as compared to 5,987 in the same period last year.

Maruti sold 90,062 passenger cars in the period, up 14.6% from 76,900 sold in the year-ago period, while the total domestic passenger vehicle sales (PV) surged 11.1% to 137,320 as compared to 121,995 in the same period last year.

Tata Motors Ltd, on the other hand, recorded a 13% growth in total domestic PV sales at 47,007 as compared to 41,587 units. Including EVs, Tata Motors' monthly sales also surged 13% to 47,107, up from 41,630.

In the domestic commercial vehicle category, Tata Motors recorded 28% de-growth at 21,507, down from 29,880 units sold in the year-ago period. The total commercial vehicle sales dipped 27% to 22,492 as compared to 30,838 in the same period last year.

With this, Tata Motors' domestic sales declined 4% to 68,514 as compared to 71,467 in the year-ago period. The total sales in the domestic and international market for April 2023 stood at 69,599 vehicles, down 3.9% as compared to 72,468 units during April 2022.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd. (HMIL) registered domestic sales of 49,701 units and export sales of 8,500 units, with cumulative sales of 58,201 units for April 2023. The domestic sales rose 12.9% to 49,701 as compared to 44,001, while the exports plunged 30.3% to 8,500 as compared to 12,200 in the year-ago period. Overall, Hyundai India recorded a 3.5% growth in monthly sales.

Kia India reported strong growth of 24% for the period of Jan-April 2023 over the corresponding period last year, and a 22% YoY growth with 23,216 units in April 2023. While Kia Sonet emerged as the top contributor to overall sales with 9,744 units, the Seltos and the Carens also performed well with 7,213 units and 6,107 units sold domestically, respectively. Kia’s flagship SUVs -- the Seltos and the Sonet continue to report strong growth with 32,249 units and 37,518 from Jan-April 2023, contributing roughly 33% and 38% respectively to Kia’s domestic sales.

MG Motor India, which recently launched the ultra-compact Comet EV, announced retail sales of 4,551 units in April 2023, a 126% year-on-year growth over the same month last year. The company said the supply chain constraints remain in a few models, though it's working towards meeting customer demand.