Maruti Suzuki’s Production Fell Nearly 98% In May, Amid Easing Lockdown

India’s largest carmaker manufactured 97.54% fewer vehicles last month even as it made a cautious return to production and opened select dealerships amid easing lockdown.

Production fell 97.54% year-on-year to 3,714 units in May as against 1,51,188 units in the same month last year, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. said in a regulatory filing Tuesday. Passenger vehicle production stood at 3,652 units in May versus 1,48,095 units a year ago, indicating a decline of 97.53%.

Only 401 small cars—Alto, S-Presso, etc.—were manufactured last month, compared to 23,874 in the year-ago period. Production of compact cars—WagonR, Celerio, Ignis, Swift, Baleno and Dzire—fell to 1,950 units as compared to 84,705 units in May last year.

Production of utility vehicles, such as Vitara Brezza, Ertiga and S-Cross, declined by 96.25% to 928 units as compared to 24,748 units a year ago. The Ciaz sedan saw its output decline to 163 units in May from 3,834 units a year ago.

Maruti Suzuki's car sales dipped as well, by 86.23% year-on-year to 18,539 units in May. Domestic car sales declined 88.93% year-on-year to 13,888 units. The company exported 4,651 units last month, down 48.82% from the year-ago period.

The carmaker also reported its quarterly results last month. Its net profit fell 28% year-on-year to Rs 1,292 crore in the March quarter on the back of revenue that decreased 15% to Rs 18,199 crore.

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But Maruti Suzuki sees personal vehicles making a comeback after the lockdown is lifted as social distancing becomes a common practice, Chairman RC Bhargava told Bloomberg in an April interview.

“If buyers become apprehensive of sharing space with another passenger it will increase demand for vehicles,” Bhargava said. “It’s not the same India anymore. People’s attitudes toward buying will change.”