After three months of declining sales, Maruti Suzuki has registered a growth of 5.6 per cent in domestic sales in January 2009. The company sold 67,005 cars last month, as against 63,253 units in the corresponding period the previous year. Auto industry experts have attributed this growth to the massive discounts offered by Maruti on its models in December and January, softening interest rates on car loans and increased sales among government employees. Also, the company’s presence in rural markets has seen considerable growth over the past six months.
Other car companies, however, could not replicate Maruti’s success. Mahindra Renault’s sales went down by a whopping 74 per cent in January, while Hyundai and Honda showed a decline of 13.5 and 25.7 per cent respectively. Tata Motors’ sales in January grew in comparison to sales in December 2008, but fell by 9 per cent in comparison to January 2008.