Indian Automakers Boost Production and Dealer Inventories for Festive Season

Automakers are stepping up production and strengthening dealer inventories as they gear up for the peak festive buying season, with strong bookings putting pressure on companies to ensure vehicle availability and convert demand into retail sales.

Maruti Suzuki India, the country’s largest carmaker, has 2.2 lakh pending bookings ahead of the festive season. Hyundai Motor India has built four-five weeks of inventory across its dealer network, while Mahindra & Mahindra has increased its utility vehicle and electric vehicle manufacturing capacity to 68,000 units a month to improve supplies and reduce waiting periods.

Maruti Suzuki senior executive officer Partho Banerjee said the company currently has 2.2 lakh pending bookings, equivalent to 16 days of stock ahead of the festive season. The company had 12 days of stock at the start of the financial year.

Maruti has also commissioned two new production lines, adding 5 lakh units to its capacity. Production is being ramped up gradually, with the new lines expected to fully stabilise by the end of the year.

The company is calibrating production and supplies across models to prevent waiting periods for individual vehicles from rising disproportionately during the festive period, Banerjee said.

"However, due to supply constraints, we may introduce special schemes for our pending booking customers," he said.

Hyundai Motor India managing director and CEO Tarun Garg said the company has strengthened dealer inventory, optimised logistics and improved product availability across its network ahead of the festive season.

Hyundai has built four-five weeks of inventory across its dealer network to meet anticipated demand, Garg said, adding that the company is focused on balancing existing bookings with adequate dealership stock to maximise retail conversions.

Mahindra & Mahindra Automotive Division CEO Nalinikanth Gollagunta said demand remains robust across the company's portfolio.

The company has scaled up its SUV and EV manufacturing capacity to 68,000 units a month during the first half of the year, helping improve supply-side responsiveness and reduce waiting periods even as bookings remain healthy, he said.

With consumer sentiment remaining positive, automakers are now focused on ensuring that production and dealer stocks keep pace with demand through the festive period spanning Navratri, Dussehra, Dhanteras and Diwali.