Mercedes-Benz India sales recover in Q4 but down 10% in 2019

Mercedes-Benz India has announced its 2019 sales numbers. Total sales fell 9.9% at 13,786 units (2018 sales: 15,538 units) on a year-on-year basis but the company retains its position as the No. 1 luxury carmaker in India. Interestingly, the company recorded its best ever Q4 in CY2019, with sales of 3,871 vehicles, a growth of 3.3 percent YoY despite challenging market conditions.

Mercedes-Benz India sales volumes in Q4 2019 saw a growth of 15.41 percent over Q3.

Speaking on the company’s sales performance, Martin Schwenk, MD and CEO, Mercedes-Benz India said, “2020 is going to be another important year for Mercedes-Benz India and we continue to be optimistic with the country’s mid to long-term prospect. We had an overwhelming response to our entire BS IV portfolio and we are now ready with the all-new BS VI portfolio, way ahead of the deadline. This year the market will witness a strong product offensive from Mercedes-Benz beginning with the New GLE, and followed by some of the most significant product introductions from our global portfolio for the Indian market, including those without any predecessors.  These products will redefine luxury and performance motoring and chart new avenues for sustainable mobility in India. In 2020, Mercedes-Benz will also witness strategic network expansion in key existing as well as new markets.”

In 2018, the carmaker had reported record sales of 15,538 units;  n 2017 sales totalled 15,330 units. Elaborating on Mercedes-Benz India's  performance amidst the industry-wide slowdown, Schwenk added that, “We are satisfied with our sales performance in 2019 despite facing strong macro-economic headwinds, specifically in the first three quarters. We were however able to positively influence the customer sentiment with our industry-best customer solutions and achieved the new best ever Q4. 2019 was a significant year as we not only introduced a host of new products but also created new industry benchmark with introduction of finance programmes like ‘WISHBOX’, launching new infotainment technology-MBUX (Mercedes-Benz User Experience), introducing ‘Mercedes me connect’ (connected car services) and also some innovative service initiatives like ‘Premiere Express

Mercedes-Benz will be launching new-generation variants of the CLA, GLA and GLS models in India from Q2 2020 onwards

Also read: BMW India sells 9,000 units in 2019, down 13.5%