The country’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India on Monday said it will increase vehicle prices in January 2024, citing cost pressure driven by the overall inflationary environment and increased commodity rates.
The company — which sells a range of vehicles from entry-level small car Alto to multi-utility vehicle Invicto, priced between Rs 3.54 lakh and Rs 28.42 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) — however, did not specify the quantum of the proposed price hike.
In an interaction with PTI, Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) Senior Executive Officer (Marketing and Sales) Shashank Srivastava said the price hike would vary from model to model and in some, it will be “substantial”.
“There is an inflationary pressure all around, including volatility in commodities, so that is the reason we have decided to increase the prices in January,” he noted.
MSI had last hiked prices by 0.8 per cent in April this year. It had hiked a total increase of 2.4 per cent in the last fiscal.
“There is no choice left for us now but to enhance the prices…we are yet to figure out the exact quantum of the increase,” Srivastava said.
Earlier in a regulatory filing, MSI stated that the company has planned to increase the prices of its cars in January 2024 on account of increased cost pressure driven by overall inflation and increased commodity prices.
It further said, “While the company makes maximum efforts to reduce cost and offset the increase, it may have to pass on some increase to the market. This price increase shall vary across models”.
German luxury carmaker Audi said it will hike prices of its vehicles in India by up to 2 per cent from January next year, citing rising input and operational costs.
The price hike will be effective from January 1, 2024, and will be across the model range, Audi India said in a statement.
When contacted, Mercedes-Benz India noted that it is also mulling to hike prices from January.
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