Maruti Suzuki India, the passenger vehicle export leader since FY2022, is well set to retain its No. 1 exporter title for the fourth fiscal in FY2025. With shipments of 147,063 units in April-September 2024, it is 62,162 PVs ahead of Hyundai Motor India, even as Volkswagen India moves into No. 3 position for the first time with 35,079 units and stellar 74% YoY growth.
19 Oct 2024 | 6538 Views | By Ajit Dalvi
Even though passenger vehicle leader Maruti Suzuki India’s domestic market wholesales at 844,614 units were down 3% YoYin April-September 2024, the company is riding a wave of export demand. In the first-half of FY2025, Maruti Suzuki has shipped a total of 147,063 PVs, up 12% YoY. This number ...
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Even though passenger vehicle leader Maruti Suzuki India’s domestic market wholesales at 844,614 units were down 3% YoY in April-September 2024, the company is riding a wave of export demand. In the first-half of FY2025, Maruti Suzuki has shipped a total of 147,063 PVs, up 12% YoY. This number is 52% of its record export sales of 280,712 units in FY2024 and ensures that the car, SUV and MPV manufacturer is well set to retain the title of ‘India’s top PV exporter’ for the fourth fiscal year in a row.
As per export data released by industry body SIAM, a total of 376,679 units were exported in April-September 2024, up 12% YoY (H1 FY2024: 336,754 units), which gives Maruti Suzuki a 39% share of total made-in-India passenger vehicle exports.
The company, which exports to nearly 100 countries and sees Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Middle East are its key markets, currently exports 18 models with the Fronx being the latest to join the export portfolio. While exports of hatchbacks and sedans at 70,510 units were down 30% YoY, the automaker shipped also 111 Eeco vans in H1 FY2025. UVs – 72,908 units and up 179% – accounted for 50% of Maruti exports, clearly establishing their similar importance both in the domestic and export markets for the company. What has added tailwind to SUV exports is the kicking off of overseas shipments of the Grand Vitara and, in early August, of the Fronx compact SUV which has now been launched in Japan. Other Maruti models with high export demand include the Brezza SUV, Dzire sedan, and the Swift, S-Presso and Baleno hatchbacks.
Hyundai Motor India, with exports of 84,900 units, sees a YoY decline of 1 percent. The company, which lost the top exporter title to Maruti Suzuki in FY2022, has been stretched for manufacturing capacity and has focused on catering to demand in the domestic market. In FY2024, the company’s manufacturing plants in Chennai operated at 97.10% of its total capacity. With additional capacity coming its way with the acquisition of GM India’s Talegaon plant, which is expected to commence commercial operations partly in the second half of FY2026, Hyundai will be better placed to cater to exports in the coming years.
Hyundai’s top PV exports included i10 and i20 hatchbacks and Aura sedan (42,546 units, down 3%), the new sixth-generation Verna sedan (27,061 units, up 6%), Venue and Exter SUVs (8,927 units, up 6%), flagship Alcazar SUV (4,702 units, down 19%) and the Creta SUV (1,664 units, down 34%).
VW India with exports of 35,079 vehicles (up 74%) in H1 FY2025 has moved up to No. 3 rank. The Virtus sedan (24,733 units, up 84%) and Taigun SUV (10,346 units, up 53%) are the growth drivers.
The big news is though is Volkswagen India, which witnessed strong export demand in FY2024 (44,180 units), has shipped 35,079 cars and SUVs in April-September 2024, up 74% and moves up to No. 3 position from No. 4 in Q1 FY2025 and FY2024. Halfway into FY2025, VW India is now only 9,101 units shy of its FY2024 exports.
Leading the charge for the German carmaker is the made-in-India Virtus global sedan with 24,733 units, up 84% (H1 FY2024: 13,459) and the Taigun midsize SUV with 10,346 units, up 53% (H1 FY2024: 6,747). Both the models are built on VW’s MQB-AO-IN platform (as are Skoda Auto India’s Slavia sedan and Kushaq SUV).
Nissan Motor India, with 33,059 units, up 64%, is ranked fourth on the PV export ladder-board. The Sunny sedan continues to be its top export model with 26,764 units, (up 56%), followed by the Magnite SUV (6,295 units, up 112% YoY). On June 29, the company crossed the cumulative export milestone of 1.1 million units, with a Magnite being the milestone SUV shipped from the Ennore Kamarajar Port.
Honda Cars India, which was in third position in Q1 FY2025 with 18,009 units, is now down to No. 5 in H1 FY2025 with 31,775 units, up 229% on H1 FY2024’s 9,669 units. The Japanese carmaker, which is back in the SUV game with the Elevate, has received a huge boost with exports of the made-in-India WR-V (the rebadged Elevate SUV). At 22,557 units exported, the Elevate accounts for 71% of Honda’s exports in H1 FY2025. Other exports comprise the City (8,678 units) and the Amaze (540 units).
Honda is the second-highest UV exporter – the 10,659 Elevates/WR-Vs in Q1 FY2025 give it a UV export share of 14% of total exports of 76,281 units by India UV Inc. Since August 2023, when Elevate exports to Japan began, HCIL has shipped a total of 61,863 units. The Elevate has also eclipsed City sedan exports (7,080 units) in Q1 FY2025.
Kia India, which was the No. 3 PV exporter in FY2024 (52,105 units, down 39%) is now down to No. 6 position in H1 FY2025. The 14,828 units constitute a marked 62% YoY decline (H1 FY2024: 39,247 units). Numbers have been dragged down because of the YoY decline in its top two export models – the Sonet (6,439 units, down 74%) and Seltos (3,362 units, down 67%). The Carens MPV, however, has bucked the trend with shipments of 5,027 units, up 14% YoY.
Toyota Kirloskar Motor, which has increased production capacity at its plants in Bidadi, Karnataka, retains its seventh ranking (as of FY2024) in H1 FY2025 with 12,288 units, up 49% YoY (H1 FY2024: 8,264). The export models are both UVs – the Rumion MPV and the Urban Cruiser Hyryder.
PCA Motors, the maker of Citroen cars in India, which had dispatched 3,278 units abroad in FY2024, has exported 2,259 units in H1 FY2025, up 105 percent. On April 11, 2024, Citroen India dispatched the inaugural shipment of 500 units of the made-in-India Citroen e-C3 hatchbacks to Indonesia from Kamarajar Port to become the first multinational carmaker in India to export EVs.
Tata Motors, with 1,512 units, shipped 109 units more in H1 FY2025 than it did in the year-ago period.
FIRST-HALF PV EXPORTS AUGUR WELL FOR FY2025
Given that FY2024 exports at 672,105 units were up just 1.4% YoY, India Passenger Vehicle Inc’s total overseas shipments of 376,679 units, which are a 12% YoY increase, constitute a good opening quarter for FY2025 and augur well for the ongoing fiscal. At halfway stage in FY2025, the difference stands at 295,426 units.
India PV Inc's best-ever export year was FY2017 when a total of 758,830 units were shipped overseas (with Hyundai Motor India, Maruti Suzuki and Nissan Motor India leading the charge). PV exports had slid to their lowest level – 404,400 units – in the past 10 years in FY2021.
After three years of robust sales in the domestic market, demand has slowed down in the first six months of the current fiscal and, as per dealer body FADA, passenger vehicle inventories are currently at a record high. FADA continues to red-flag high inventory levels of 80-85 days, which are equivalent to 790,000 vehicles worth Rs 79,000 crore.
With ample manufacturing capacity at hand amid slowing domestic market demand, car and SUV manufacturers will be looking to aggressively ship their products to overseas markets. Will FY2025 transform into a record-breaking fiscal for exports? Well, we will have to wait to see just how the second half of this fiscal pans out.
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