Maruti Suzuki hikes prices across models by 1.1% from today

Maruti Suzuki on Monday said the company has increased prices across its model range by about 1.1% starting today. "With reference to the earlier communication dated 02nd December 2022, the Company announced an increase in prices across models today. An estimated weighted average of increase across models stands at around 1.1%."

The PV market leader said the indicative figure is calculated using ex-showroom prices of models in Delhi and will come into effect from January 16, 2023.

Maruti holds about 40% of the market share in India's PV market. Before this, Maruti had hiked prices of its popular hatchback models like Swift and all CNG variants as input costs continue to put pressure. The company increased PV prices by around 8% from January 2021 to March 2022 as commodities became costlier.

India's biggest passenger vehicle maker sold a total of 1,39,347 units in December 2022, a 9% decline from 1,53,149 vehicles sold in December 2021, mainly due to a shortage of electronic components. Of this, the total domestic PV sales in December 2022 stood at 1,12,010, down 8.9% from 1,23,016 units sold in the year-ago period.

Despite continuous price hikes -- not just by Maruti but rivals like Tata, Hyundai and others as well -- and higher interest rates, people have resorted to a car-buying spree this year. Maruti Suzuki chairman R.C. Bhargava in December told Fortune India that the Indian automobile industry has reached a stage, at least this year, where it will surpass the figures of FY19, which was the year when it recorded its highest numbers.

The automotive industry also saw its best festive season in four years this year as customers for every segment stepped out in droves to partake in festive purchases.

As per estimates, the PV industry’s wholesale volumes may touch an all-time high of 3.7 million units in FY23, a growth of 21.24% compared to the last fiscal, thanks to the robust demand, the ratings agency ICRA says. It says market leader Maruti Suzuki could add one lakh units of passenger vehicles in its capacity by the end of FY24, and 2.5 lakh units of PV units by the end of FY25 at an outlay of ₹7,000 crore in FY2023.

In sync with the rising demand, Maruti is also planning a short-term ramp-up of capacity at its plant in Manesar. The ramp-up—which could be realised by April 2024—is expected to act as a stopgap measure until its newest facility at Kharkhoda, near Sonipat, is ready for production.

Maruti's net profit jumped more than fourfold to ₹2,061.5 crore during the July-September quarter, while its revenue grew around 46% year-on-year to ₹29,931 crore, with the company selling a total of 5,17,395 vehicles during the quarter. Maruti is yet to announce its Q3 FY23 financial results.