NEW DELHI: Carmakers in India could be struggling to keep sales at home in high growth trajectory, but they are taking heart from the fact that exports are soaring to say the least.
During first six months of this fiscal, car exports from India soared by 55.93 per cent, while the sales in the domestic market increased by only a mere 5.39 per cent.
According to Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers data (SIAM), the country's export stood at 1,54,787 units during April-September period compared with 99,266 units in the same period last year, led by Hyundai Motor India (HMIL), which has emerged as the numero uno exporter.
HMIL had the lion's share and single handedly drove up the export tally with 78.61 per cent jump over the same period last year.
The company exported 1,20,649 units in the last six months against 67,626 units in the year-ago period, SIAM said.
It currently ships 'Santro', 'Getz Prime', 'i10' and 'Accent' to over 95 countries across the world. It has added 'i20', which was recently launched for the European market at Paris Auto Show, to its export basket.
The company had announced to produce 5.3 lakh units this year, of which about 2.7 lakh units would be exported.
Rival and the country's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) also registered a healthy growth of 20.03 per cent by exporting 29,698 cars compared with 23,750 units last year.
Mahindra Renault has started exporting it sedan 'Logan' from this fiscal and shipped 243 units. Fiat India, which is seeking a resurgence in the country, also exported 186 units in the period in FY'09.
However, country's third largest carmaker Tata Motors witnessed a fall of 43.60 per cent in exports during April-September period this year at 3,972 units against 7,043 units in the same period last year.
The carmakers have gone through a rough ride in the domestic market courtesy high interest rates, rising fuel prices and lack of finance. The companies sold a total of 6,00,385 cars this fiscal compared with 5,69,680 units in April-September period last year, up by a mere 5.39 per cent, SIAM said.
In terms of growth percentage, HMIL became a forerunner in the domestic segment, too, with 29.81 per cent jump at 1,26,850 cars in April-September this year compared with 97,717 units in the same period last year.
MSI registered 4.83 per cent jump in its cumulative domestic sales at 3,07,085 units compared with 2,92,941 units last year for the same period.
