Automobile major Maruti Suzuki India has been hit hard by the paucity of electronic components due to the semiconductor shortage, as total sales declined in August by 19.5% month-on-month to 1,30,699 units. "Sales volume of the company in August 2021 was affected due to electronic components shortage. The company took all possible measures to limit the adverse impact," it said in a statement.
However, the total sales of 1,30,699 units in August represented a 4.8% increase from 1,24,624 units sold during the corresponding month of 2020. Accordingly, total sales in the month include domestic sales of 1,05,775 units, off-take to other original equipment manufacturers (OEM) of 4,305 units, and exports of 20,619 units.
While the sales volume in August 2021 was affected due to electronic components' shortage, the sales volume in August 2020 was impacted due to COVID-19 related disruptions.
Maruti Suzuki said on Tuesday, August 31 that its vehicle production in September will dwindle by 60% due to the chip shortage. The company said the chip shortage will hit production in Gurugram and Manesar plants and had earlier cut down production at its Gujarat plant. This is the second consecutive month when production will be cut by the company due to the chip shortage.
“Owing to a supply constraint of electronic components due to the semiconductor shortage situation, the company is expecting an adverse impact on vehicle production in the month of September in both Haryana and its contract manufacturing company, Suzuki Motor Gujarat in Gujarat,” Maruti Suzuki (MSIL) said in an exchange filing.
MSIL added that though the situation is quite dynamic, it is currently estimated that the total vehicle production volume across both locations could be around 40% of normal production.
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) was also affected by the semiconductor shortage and posted an overall sales of 30,585 units in August, a decline of 21.5% compared to July. M&M’s passenger car sales, too, fell 24% to 15,973 units in August on a monthly basis. The firm, however, expects demand to pick up during the festive season. "With the festive period on the anvil, which also coincides with the harvesting season, we are anticipating a robust demand in the coming months,” said Hemant Sikka, President of Farm Equipment sector at M&M.
Hyundai Motor India's August total sales rose by over 12.3% on a year-on-year basis. The company's cumulative sales rose to 59,068 units last month from 52,609 units sold during August 2020, the company said.
Geography-wise, the domestic sales rose to 46,866 units from 45,809 units reported for the corresponding period of last year. However, this represented a fall of 2.44% on a monthly basis. The company shipped out 12,202 units in August from 6,800 units sold abroad in the like month of 2020.
"Hyundai Motor India registered domestic sales of 46,866 units and exports of 12,202 units with cumulative sales of 59,068 units for the month of August 2021. This translates into a growth of 2.3% in the domestic volumes and 12.3% in the total volume over last year's numbers,” the company said in a statement.
Tata Motors' total sales in August rose to 57,995 units from 36,505 units sold during the corresponding month of last year. Notably, the company's total domestic sales during the month under review grew by 53% to 54,190 units over last year. Furthermore, total passenger vehicle sales rose to 28,018 units from 18,583 units' off-take in August 2020. However, this was down 7% from July 2021’s figures of 30,185 units sold.
"Semiconductor shortage continues to impact the auto industry globally. The recent lockdowns in East Asia have worsened the supply situation and hence Tata Motors is forced to moderate production and off-take volumes in the coming months,” the company said in a statement.
"The situation is fluid and we will continue to work to mitigate the impact of this and aim to meet our customer orders through an agile, multi-pronged approach including close engagement with our extended supply chain partners, procuring chipsets from the open market, using alternate chips and managing our model and trim mix,” the statement added.
In addition, the company said its EV sales crossed a crucial threshold of 1,000 units this month. “The order book is strong and we aim to meet the robust demand to the best of our abilities despite the supply challenges,” Tata Motors added.
With IANS inputs