Maruti Suzuki: Record Bookings & Festive Sales

New Delhi, Oct 14 (PTI) Buoyed by a strong demand for entry-level cars, Maruti Suzuki has received over 4 lakh bookings and retailed a record 2.5 lakh units in the last one month making it the best ever festive season for the country's largest carmaker, a senior company executive said on Tuesday.

The share of the company's entry-level cars in the overall sales has also gone up in the last one month aided by price cuts owing to GST rate rationalisation with effect from September 22.

"We have received over 4 lakh bookings in the last four weeks, meaning 1 lakh bookings each week which is the all-time highest for us," Maruti Suzuki India Senior Executive Officer (Marketing and Sales) Partho Banerjee told PTI in an interaction.

The company has sold 2.5 lakh units in the period under review, he added.

Banerjee noted that the company has received over 80,000 bookings for its entry-level cars like Alto, Celerio, WagonR and S-Presso in the last one month indicating a revival of the segment which witnessed contraction over the last few years.

"Before GST 2.0 kicked in, our small cars used to account for 16.7 per cent of the overall sales. Post GST rationalisation and price cuts, it has now risen to 21.5 per cent," Banerjee stated.

He noted that traction for small cars has led to more first-time car buyers visiting showrooms, indicating a shift in consumer behaviour.

"It shows that more people are upgrading from two-wheelers to cars, indicating a shift in buying patterns," he said.

He added that the company has enhanced production in order to cater to increased demand from dealers.

With effect from September 22, the company has passed on the full benefit of the GST rate reduction on automobiles to customers, in line with the revised GST regulations.

The company reduced prices of entry-level model S-Presso by up to Rs 1,29,600; Alto K10 by up to Rs 1,07,600; Celerio by Rs to 94,100; Wagon-R by up to Rs 79,600 and Ignis by up to Rs 71,300.

The government has moved to two-tier GST slabs of 5 per cent and 18 per cent effective from September 22, the first day of Navaratri.

This has led to the petrol, LPG and CNG vehicles of less than 1,200 cc and not more than 4,000 mm length and diesel vehicles of up to 1,500 cc and 4,000 mm length moving to the 18 per cent slab from the current 28 per cent.

Motorcycles up to 350 cc are now taxed at a lower GST of 18 per cent against 28 per cent earlier.

All automobiles above 1,200 cc and longer than 4,000 mm as well as motorcycles above 350 cc and racing cars are being charged with a 40 per cent levy.

Small hybrid cars have also benefited, while EVs continue to be charged at 5 per cent.