Auto companies eye growth with festive launches – Times of India

NEW DELHI: As the festive season sets in, auto companies have commenced launches in a bid to excite buyers.
On Wednesday, Mercedes-Benz India drove in the Rs 1.2-crore GLE 55 AMG coupe, while Toyota launched the Urban Cruiser mini off-roader, or the re-stylised Maruti Suzuki Brezza.
These come days after the launch of the Sonet mini SUV by Kia, and will be followed by other new models such as Hyundai’s i20 premium hatch, MG Motor’s Gloster, Mahindra’s Thar, EQC electric from Mercedes, and Maruti’s Celerio hatch.
Analysts say that the Covid-hit industry is banking heavily on new models to steer out of the slowdown as pressure on economy, job losses and salary cuts have broadly kept buyers nervous.
Santosh Iyer, VP (sales and marketing) at Mercedes-Benz India, said while this year will be surely negative because of closure of business in the previous months due to the coronavirus lockdown, “business is gradually returning”, especially on account of new launches. “We’ve had an exciting response to the GLS luxury SUV, and expect strong numbers for the new GLE AMG. We are seeing significant increase in enquiries and bookings, and feel the momentum will continue. Our hope is that by October, we should return to levels that we had in the same month last year.”
Naveen Soni, head of sales and marketing at Toyota Kirloskar, also said the market has started to look up. “The retail numbers are healthy, especially as we enter the festive period.” Urban Cruiser is the second car that Toyota Kirloskar is sourcing from Maruti as part of an international arrangement between their two Japanese parents. The first car, Glanza, was based on Maruti’s Baleno and Toyota has sold over 30,000 units of the model since June last year.
Companies and industry body Siam have requested the government for a 10% cut in base GST rate for the auto sector — from 28% to 18% — so that affordability rises. The government had assured companies that it will consider a tax rate cut, though it also advised them to cut royalties and costs.