Tuesday, November 01, 2022
By Manoj Kumawat
Will Hatchback Segment Vanish In India? Overview
Despite encouraging sales recorded by the car manufacturers in India during the festival season, the performance of the hatchback segment has not been encouraging. The decline in the hatchback segment has not happened suddenly and started gradually with increasing inflation. This has affected the buying power of the buyers willing to buy their first vehicle or shift from a two-wheeler to a four-wheeler.
Commenting on this, R C Bhargava, Chairman, of Maruti Suzuki India Limited, said, "Next year, there will be degrowth in the hatchback segment. The purchasing power of the hatchback segment has been affected and hence, is not growing. The production capacity will come down from 70 per cent to what the market needs”. According to him, there is a dynamic shift in the passenger vehicle segment, and now the buyers prefer to go for SUVs, and Maruti Suzuki is looking to focus on the SUV segment according to the shifting trend of the buyers. He also added that the demand for the recently launched Grand Vitara and Brezza is encouraging. This is also an indication that buyers are now looking beyond hatchbacks.
According to Bhargava, the increasing demand for utility vehicles has compelled car manufacturers to rethink their production strategies. He said that MSIL will do everything to strengthen its position in the segment of bigger vehicles, maintaining a proper balance between small and big vehicles. Speaking about the company’s future plans Bhargava said, that the Indo-Japanese carmakers are planning to launch their first electric vehicle in 2025. At present, the domestic carmaker Tata Motors dominates the electric car segment in India.
The Indian auto industry has suffered bitterly for two years due to the global pandemic COVID 10 and the shortage of semiconductor chips later. The arrival of the festive season has shown positive signs with all segments witnessing bumper sales during the pre-festive and festive seasons.
