Despite the ongoing West Asia conflict causing global trade route disruptions, Mercedes-Benz India reports resilient customer demand, particularly for its new electric CLA sedan, though it faces challenges with component supply delays and escalating shipping costs.
American industry groups sought punitive tariffs on Indian goods at USTR hearings, while Indian officials defended the country's manufacturing growth as demand-led and WTO-compliant.
Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) announced plans to make Tamil Nadu its 'flagship EV hub for India', committing over 26,000 crore in investment, enhancing localisation, and creating approximately 2,000 additional jobs over the next five to six years. The company will roll out two new EV models from its Chennai facility this year, including its first mass-market dedicated EV.
Workers at an automotive components factory in Haryana, India, protested for two days demanding the implementation of a minimum wage hike announced by the state government. The protests led to detentions and police action, highlighting tensions over wages and working conditions.
'I own a few cars that I have had specified minutely to my taste, and it does feel nice to know that there are no other vehicles like them anywhere in the world.'
Escalating geopolitical tensions in West Asia are beginning to disrupt India's automotive supply chain, leading to rising commodity prices, logistics bottlenecks, material shortages, and pressure on consumer demand, with two-wheeler makers already raising prices.
The Indian government has waived customs duty on critical petrochemical products until June 30 to ensure supply stability and provide relief to consumers amid disruptions caused by the crisis in West Asia.
Speculation about rising competition from global majors has led to shares of major Indian automobile manufacturers such as Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), Maruti Suzuki India, and Tata Motors taking a hit on the BSE.
The quarterly manufacturing index by the industry body Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (Ficci) rose to an all-time high in the third quarter of financial year 2025-26 (Q3FY26), with 91 per cent of respondents reporting either higher or same production levels, against 87 per cent in the previous quarter.
'Workers are being pushed into 12- to 14-hour shifts under poor conditions. These largely leaderless protests are likely to continue.'
India's home-grown EV startups say the government's auto PLI scheme is helping big players while shutting out innovators building electric two- and three-wheelers from scratch.
French automotive component maker Valeo on Wednesday said it will invest over Rs 2,150 crore in India and treble its annual sales in the country to around Rs 7,510 crore by 2028.
Glimpses from Beijing's grand Auto China exhibition reveal the rapid evolution of electric, autonomous and futuristic mobility.
Karan Adani of Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone emerged as the top absolute value creator, adding Rs 2.67 trillion as the company's mcap rose from Rs 42,149 crore in March 2020 to Rs 3.09 trillion in March 2026 (7.3x) -- the largest rupee addition on the list.
The most expensive cars on the planet in 2026 got their price tag for their advanced engineering and bespoke craftsmanship. Produced in numbers so small they border on myth.
Rising automobile exports are reflective of the increasing acceptance of India-manufactured vehicles across global markets, according to Economic Survey 2025-26.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to inaugurate a semiconductor plant in Sanand, Gujarat, and launch multiple development projects worth over Rs 20,000 crore, marking a significant boost to India's semiconductor industry and infrastructure.
The production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for the automobile sector has created market distortions, excluded innovation-led electric two-wheeler (e2w) makers, and failed to convert cost advantages into export competitiveness, with 77 per cent of export volumes driven by non-PLI models, said a report released by the Centre for Domestic Economy Policy Research (C-DEP) on Friday.
After a record-breaking year, India's automobile industry is entering 2026 on a relatively strong footing, with sales growth expected in the 6-8 per cent range. The outlook is underpinned by policy support, including GST rationalisation, easing monetary conditions, and income tax relief, which together are likely to improve affordability and sustain consumer demand across vehicle segments.
Mahindra & Mahindra plans to manage rare earth magnet supplies through alternative sourcing channels for the next nine months and will pursue 'engineering efforts' to address the raw material shortage situation amid growing product portfolio, according to a senior company executive. The imposition of export restrictions by China on key rare earth magnets has resulted in supply chain bottlenecks, impacting the user industries, including the auto and electronics sectors.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Micron Technology's semiconductor plant in Sanand, Gujarat, highlighting India's growing presence in the hardware sector and its strong partnership with the United States in AI and chip technologies.
Three additional vehicle makers and five more auto component makers will begin availing financial incentives under the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for the automobile sector from 2026-27 (FY27) onwards, Hanif Qureshi, additional secretary at the Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI), said on Wednesday.
Almost 30 per cent of Maruti's auto-component exports are to the US, and about half of that is facing a duty of 25 per cent and the other half 50 per cent.
The next many decades belong to India as the global economic powerhouse, and it will be essential to continue demonstrating policy stability, as the country aspires to be the world's manufacturing hub, Maruti Suzuki India MD and CEO Hisashi Takeuchi said on Friday.
Inventories of rare earth magnets used in critical automotive components - particularly electric vehicle (EV) traction motors and power steering systems - could run dry by mid-July this year, according to rating agency Icra.
'The reported deal between the European Union and China should mitigate it (shortage) for the medium to long term. Let's wait and watch how this plays out.'
The auto component industry caters to automobile industry through a whole gamut of auto parts such as engine parts, body & chassis, electrical parts, drive transmission & steering parts, braking, suspension etc.
The 17 rare earth elements that are at the centre of the current crisis are critical components of everyday products -- from cars to jet engines to electronics like smartphones and flat-screen TVs.
Companies, which are jumping into the bandwagon, include MNCs. For instance, the world's leading component company Bosch has committed an investment of Rs 2,650 crore (Rs 26.50 billion) through four subsidiaries in India. Funds will be used to set up manufacturing facilities for gasoline systems, electronic control units and ABS systems.
Auto parts exports from India may see a slight slowdown as US President Donald Trump's 25 per cent tariff could increase car prices for buyers by 8-25 per cent, thereby affecting demand, experts believe.
Electric two-wheeler (e2W) companies are upset with some of their suppliers of heavy rare-earth magnet-powered electric motors, who have objected to their proposal - under consideration by the government - that would allow e2W original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) an exemption from localisation norms on electric motors, thereby enabling them to continue receiving the 5,000-per-vehicle subsidy.V
Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) said on Thursday its operations are unaffected by the global rare earth magnet shortage, but added that the situation is "uncertain and evolving". The firm said it is exploring multiple solutions to maintain continuity in operations and will notify stakeholders in case of material impact.
Indian auto component industry is expecting a slowdown in growth to 12-15 per cent in 2011-12 from over 34 per cent in the previous fiscal, Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India said on Tuesday.
The stock of automotive (auto) components major Bharat Forge has risen 14.6 per cent over the past month. Despite ongoing demand challenges, strong operating performance in the July-September quarter (Q3) of 2025-26 (FY26), a diversified revenue base, and expectations of a gradual recovery have lifted sentiment.
The performance of the auto component industry was impacted by moderation of vehicle sales in India in 2011-12.
Dixon Technologies has received approval from the Indian government to form a joint venture (JV) with Chinese peer Longcheer, according to a regulatory filing. The JV will be formed between Dixon and Longcheer's Singapore-based subsidiary.
The average car price in India has increased rapidly in the last 5-6 years due to new emission regulations and demand for more spacious and comfortable cars loaded with advanced technology.
The government has decided to extend the Rs 25,938-crore production-linked incentive scheme for the automotive sector by one year, Union Heavy Industries Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey said on Tuesday. Post extension, the five-year scheme, originally in place from 2022-23 to 2026-27, will be active until 2027-28. At present, incentives are applicable under the scheme for determined sales of Advanced Automotive Technology (AAT) products (vehicles and components) manufactured in India from 1 April 2022 onwards for a period of five consecutive years.
Auto component makers in India are bracing for a tough time. High absenteeism among workers owing to Covid-19, shortages of critical parts, and temporary closures of plants by automobile manufacturers have thrown a spanner in the works for the Rs 3.2-trillion sector, which derives 60 per cent of its revenues from automobile original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), with the balance split equally between replacement demand and exports. Car market leader Maruti Suzuki India on Saturday said it was extending the maintenance shutdown, which was from May 1 to 9, till May 16, "keeping in view the current pandemic situation". Some activities will continue in the plants.
