Hyundai has posted an 11 per cent rise in domestic sales at 35,070 units for April, led by strong demand for the Verna sedan and hatchbacks such as the Eon, i10 and the new i20.
However, exports were down 4.3 per cent at 19,536 units on the back of subdued demand in Europe.
Mr Arvind Saxena, Director for Marketing and Sales, Hyundai Motor India, said: “Consumer confidence continues to be weak, prices went up following the excise hikes in the Union Budget and interest rates are yet to come down. Given the present conditions it’s a challenging market.”
In April, sales of the hatchback range (Eon, Santro, i10, i20) stood at 44,891 units, while the Accent and Verna together sold 9,579 units. The recently launched sixth generation Sonata sold 66 units, while the Santa Fe SUV found 70 homes.
On Tuesday, most other carmakers had posted moderate growth in April sales, with expectations of an improvement only after the first half of the fiscal.
This has been attributed to advanced purchases in March as model prices went up after the Budget announcements. Also, certain states have increased road and entry taxes last month.
Market leader Maruti Suzuki’s sales were up 4 per cent, while Tata Motors posted a 3 per cent drop. A strong diesel car portfolio saw Mahindra’s sales going up 33 per cent in April.
roudra.b@thehindu.co.in