Hyundai keeps price hikes below 1.5% despite 300-400 bps commodity inflation: MD Tarun Garg

Hyundai Motor India has kept its price increases below 1.5% despite commodity costs rising 300-400 basis points across the board, as the automaker focuses on localisation and cost optimisation to absorb the pressure, Managing Director and CEO Tarun Garg said on Thursday.

“Commodities have gone up 300-400 basis points across the board,” Garg said at a media roundtable on the sidelines of the SIAM 66th Annual Convention in Delhi. However, the company continues to optimise costs and absorb cost escalations to mitigate the impact on customers.

Garg said the rise in commodity prices was not “structural” and was largely driven by geopolitical uncertainty. “We hope that in the second half, things will ease out,” he said.

The company is also keeping a close watch on costs and has been working on localisation and cost optimisation. Hyundai’s pricing increases, Garg said, have remained below 1.5% despite the sharp rise in commodity costs.

Recently, Hyundai Motor India announced that it will increase prices across its entire portfolio in September 2026, with prices set to rise by up to 1%. While Hyundai has not disclosed the revised prices of its models, it said the increase will vary by model and variant. Based on the existing price range, the hike is expected to be between ₹7,767 and ₹23,672.

This will be the Korean automaker’s third price increase this year, following revisions in June and January.

Shipping crunch has little impact on demand

On supply-chain disruptions stemming from the West Asia crisis, Garg said the global shortage of shipping vessels has so far had minimal impact on actual demand.

“There is minimal effect on the actual demand,” he said.

For Hyundai, the bigger challenge is the availability of vessels rather than shipping rates. “The challenge is more on vessel availability than the shipping price,” Garg said.

He described the vessel shortage as a non-structural issue and expects the situation to ease. Strong retail demand is also helping free up space at ports.

He further added that Hyundai has an advantage through the broader Hyundai Motor Group ecosystem, with Hyundai Glovis serving as a dedicated logistics provider. This helps the automaker reduce its dependence on third-party shipping capacity.

Focus on ramping up exports

Hyundai’s exports now account for around 24.5% of its India production, up from about 20% three years ago, and Garg expects the share to move closer to 30% over the next five years.

The automaker’s total sales stood at 65,796 units in August, up 8.8% year-on-year, with domestic sales rising 23.6% to 54,396 units. The August domestic sales figure was the company’s highest-ever for the month. Exports stood at 11,400 units.

Hyundai said domestic sales grew 12.6% year-on-year during April-August FY27. However, exports in August were impacted by logistical constraints arising from the ongoing conflict in West Asia and the broader geopolitical environment.

The company remains optimistic about export demand in the coming months as geopolitical conditions improve.