India's electric mobility goal, which has so far been riding on two wheels, is all set to graduate to four wheels. At least, the journey has begun. Hyundai Motor India said it would invest Rs 4,000 crore till 2028 to launch half-a-dozen electric vehicles (EVs) in India. It would eventually straddle premium and mass segments. The first of these - the electrified version of an internal combustion engine (ICE)-powered model - will go on sale as early as next year.
Analysts have predicted a 23 per cent volume growth for the auto segment between FY22 and FY25, riding on the company's differentiated EV and SUV plan. M&M is already a market leader with a 36 per cent share in electric three-wheelers, and its Zaheerabad plant in Telangana is ready to cater to demand. In the farm segment, the company plans to focus on niche electric products.
Global tech major IBM, which employs over a lakh individuals in India, on Wednesday termed moonlighting an unethical practice. Moonlighting, the practice of taking up secondary jobs after the regular work hours, has been highlighted by many tech companies of late. IBM's managing director for India and South Asia, Sandip Patel said, at the time of joining, the company's employees sign an agreement saying they will be working only for IBM.
Appellate tribunal NCLAT on Monday stayed the Rs 200 crore penalty imposed by the Competition Commission on Maruti Suzuki but directed the car maker to deposit 10 per cent of the total amount within three weeks. The amount has to be deposited with the Registrar of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT). A three-member NCLAT bench stayed the demand notice issued on October 27 to the car maker, subject to the condition of depositing 10 per cent of the penalty amount.
Did Sheena Bora board a Jet Airways flight on July 22, 2012, a full three months after her death in April 2012?
Even as India's passenger-vehicle sales touched a record high of 3.9 million units in 2022-23, growing 27 per cent over the previous financial year, the country's largest carmaker, Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL), said on Monday uncertainties in the electronic-component supplies might affect production in FY24. MSIL said the shortage of electronic components had some impact on production in FY23. "The company took all possible measures to minimise the impact.
Equity benchmarks continued their winning momentum for the third day on Thursday and jumped over 1.50 per cent, tracking an overall bullish trend in Asian equities. On the political front, the BJP headed for a second straight win in politically crucial Uttar Pradesh and dominated the trends chart in three other states. The 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex opened in the green and further zoomed 1,595.14 points or 2.91 per cent to 56,242.47 during early trade.
The S&P BSE Auto Index has been one of the biggest outperformers among sectoral indices over the past year with returns of 26 per cent. By comparison, the benchmarks - the National Stock Exchange Nifty50 and the S&P BSE Sensex - managed about 6-8 per cent during this period. Improving demand, falling raw material costs, and rising product realisations, led by the premiumisation of portfolios, have led to a revision of growth estimates and upgrades by domestic brokerages.
Benchmark BSE Sensex on Tuesday gave up intra-day gains to close lower by a little over 100 points on emergence of fag-end selling in FMCG, banking and IT stocks and weak opening in European stock markets. The 30-share BSE index declined 100.42 points or 0.19 per cent to settle at 53,134.35. During the day, it jumped 631.16 points or 1.18 per cent to 53,865.93.
The company, which currently sells a range of vehicles from Alto to S-Cross, said it has taken the decision to hike prices due to an increase in input costs. The weighted average price rise, with effect from April 18, in ex-showroom prices (New Delhi) across models is 1.3 per cent, it added.
Carmakers Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Renault, Kia India and MG Motor on Wednesday announced plans to hike vehicle prices from January to partially offset the impact of rising input costs. They join the likes of market leader Maruti Suzuki India and Tata Motors, which have also made the year-end announcements to raise prices from next month. Audi India said it will increase prices of its entire model range by up to 1.7 per cent, while Mercedes-Benz India noted it will hike the prices by up to 5 per cent from January 1.
Supply chain constraints will keep plaguing automobile companies even though demand significantly improved resulting in a 13 per cent year-on-year (YoY) increase in sales in financial year 2021-22 (FY22). Executives at auto firms fear that the Russia-Ukraine war will further dent the sector's prospects of recovery as supply chains face more disruptions. "The visibility in the supply side is so hazy that it is difficult to give even one quarter projection. But all the parameters of demand like pending bookings and enquiries are increasing.
Benchmark indices fell on Monday with the BSE Sensex declining 306 points, mainly dragged down by Reliance Industries. Foreign funds outflow also added to the overall bearish trend in equities on Monday. The 30-share BSE benchmark fell 306.01 points or 0.55 per cent to settle at 55,766.22. During the day, it declined 535.15 points or 0.95 per cent to 55,537.08. The broader NSE Nifty dipped 88.45 points or 0.53 per cent to 16,631.
Innovation ranging from exterior designs of vehicles to EV charger locks grabbed eyeballs at the expo
Passenger and commercial vehicle prices are expected to rise as automobile companies invest in upgrading vehicles to meet stricter emission norms that kick in from April next year. The Indian automobile industry is currently working to make their products meet the second phase of Bharat Stage VI, equivalent to Euro-VI emission norms, in real time driving conditions. Four-wheeler passenger and commercial vehicles will need more sophisticated equipment to be added to meet the next level of emission standards.
The country's top carmaker Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) on Wednesday said it has decided to advance maintenance shutdown at its two Haryana-based manufacturing plants by a month amid a surge in the COVID-19 cases across the country. The auto major was supposed to take the shutdown at its two plants in Gurugram and Manesar in June, but due to the tsunami of COVID-19 cases, it decided to take it one month earlier to save oxygen for medical needs. MSI noted that as part of the car manufacturing process, it uses a small amount of oxygen in its factories, while relatively much larger quantities are used by the manufacturers of components.
'In FY23, PV sales are expected to end the year at a record 3.8 million units, up 26 per cent. In FY24, however, the industry is expecting 5-7 per cent volume growth'
Automobile retail sales in India rose 11 per cent in September as better supplies from manufacturers enabled dealers to ramp up customer deliveries amid the ongoing festive period, Federation Of Automobile Dealers Associations said on Tuesday. Last month, total retail sales stood at 14,64,001 units as compared to 13,19,647 units in September 2021. FADA noted that October is expected to witness even better overall sales due to the festive season further gathering steam.
Even as India overtakes Japan in automotive sales in 2022, moving to third place for the first time, oddly enough the country's biggest motor show is going to see some big hitters give it a clear miss. Some prominent automotive brands have cited high event costs, negligible returns on investment, poor event management, and unfavourable location as reasons for their reluctance to participate. Major pure-play electric two-wheelers, too, are riding past this year's edition of the Auto Expo.
Open order books in February breach 700,000; wait period for some models exceed a year.
Titan was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising 3.5 per cent, followed by Kotak Bank, SBI, Maruti Suzuki, Bajaj Finance, HUL, Axis Bank and Sun Pharma. On the other hand, NTPC, Tech Mahindra, PowerGrid and Infosys were the laggards.
Equity indices slipped in the negative territory on Wednesday after a two-day breather, with the BSE Sensex tumbling 709.54 points following weak trends in global markets. Unabated foreign fund outflows also played spoilsport for the bourses. The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 709.54 points or 1.35 per cent to settle at 51,822.53. During the day, it declined 792.09 points or 1.50 per cent to 51,739.98.
White is easy to maintain, looks brighter than other colours over a longer period, is the least commonly rejected colour among family members, has high resale value, provides better safety at night, absorbs less heat in the summer season, makes small cars look bigger, and is not considered inauspicious.
Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty gave up early gains to close lower for a fourth straight session on Thursday due to selling in IT and banking shares amid weak global equities. The 30-share BSE benchmark settled 98 points or 0.18 per cent lower at 53,416.15. During the day, it hit a high of 53,861.28 and a low of 53,163.77. The broader NSE Nifty also pared initial gains and ended 28 points or 0.18 per cent down to settle at 15,938.65.
Market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies jumped to an all-time high of over Rs 280 lakh crore on Monday as benchmark indices bounced back after taking a breather in the previous trade. The 30-share BSE benchmark gained 85.88 points or 0.14 per cent to settle at 61,308.91. During the day, it jumped 162.45 points to 61,385.48.
Leading carmakers Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai witnessed a double-digit drop in sales in October on account of the global semiconductor shortage impacting production. Kia India, Honda Cars and MG Motor also saw a fall in dispatches last month as compared with October 2020. However, companies like Tata Motors, Mahindra, Nissan and Skoda managed to post positive numbers last month despite the supply chain challenges.
'Some of the launches may get deferred due to the semiconductor shortage, which is unlikely to get resolved before the second half of 2022.'
While commercial vehicles are expected to benefit from strong replacement demand, the two-wheeler and tractor segments are expected to gain from a recovery in the rural economy.
First off the block will be a new multi-purpose vehicle which is being co-developed with Toyota - Suzuki's alliance partner. The model will also wear a Toyota badge.
Companies in the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sector may legally challenge the Haryana government's new law which mandates 75 per cent reservation of jobs in the private sector for locals. "We had earlier gone to the high court against this law, but the court said that it would hear the matter after the law was notified," said Manoj Tyagi, general secretary, IMT Industrial Association. Industries and associations feel that the law will not benefit the state and will hit MSMEs that are just coming out of the crippling effects of the lockdowns owing to the Covid-19 pandemic.
At 12:25 PM, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 358 points or 1.3% at 26,368.
India's passenger vehicle exports rose by 26 per cent in April-June 2022 aided by enhanced shipments to Latin America and Africa and a low base of the year-ago quarter that was hit by the second wave of COVID-19. As per the latest data released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), passenger vehicle shipments rose to 1,60,263 units in the April-June period of this fiscal as compared with 1,27,083 units in the same quarter of 2021-22. Passenger car shipments saw an 88 per cent year-on-year growth at 1,04,400 units while utility vehicle exports rose 18 per cent to 55,547 units during the period under review, SIAM data showed.
The new year will see a line of hatchbacks (including compact SUVs) hit the Indian roads. Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com offers a peek.
After a long delay, Thailand opened its twice-postponed Bangkok international motor show to the public as coronavirus restrictions eased, with nearly all attendees wearing masks and face shields.
Recently, South Korean Foreign Minister, Chung Eui-yong, dialled his Indian counterpart, S Jaishankar, in New Delhi. His government, he said, "regretted the offence caused to the people of India". A day earlier, India had summoned the South Korean ambassador to express its "strong displeasure" over "an unacceptable social media post".
'In terms of semiconductors, challenges do remain in the pan industry, but I think we are much better than where we were a year or so back.'
Continuing its decline for the third day on Friday, the BSE gauge plummeted 1,214.96 points or 2.20 per cent to 53,887.72 during the day. It settled at 54,333.81, a decline of 768.87 points or 1.40 per cent.
Hyundai got two stars for Grand i10 Nios and Kia got three stars for Seltos.
The list clearly shows the dominance of Maruti and Hyundai in the Indian passenger vehicle market.
After a turnaround in performance by Indian equity markets since July that has seen the S&P BSE Sensex and the Nifty50 wipe out the year-to-date losses, analysts suggest investors start nibbling into stocks that are focused on the domestic economy. While they say intermittent corrections, led by policies of global central banks and other economic data, cannot be ruled out, analysts expect India's relative outperformance among global equity markets to continue as it looks better placed with a healthy economic recovery, and remains one of the fastest growing major economies. In this backdrop, Neeraj Chadawar, head of quantitative equity strategy at Axis Securities, believes that amid global slowdown, aggressive tightening by the central banks, and preference for domestic interests first (by the local government), export-oriented themes are likely to be muted or will deliver conservative returns in the near-term.
