Maruti Suzuki clocks best-ever exports in 2022: 263,068 units

Maruti Suzuki India, the passenger vehicle export market leader since the past two fiscals, has reported record exports of 263,068 units in calendar year 2022. This is an increase of 28% over the previous record of 205,450 vehicles despatched overseas in CY2021 (see data table below) and over twice the volume in pre-Covid 2019 (107,190) or 2018 (113,824).

At present, the company exports 16 models and in 2022, the highest exported models were the Dzire sedan, the Swift, S-Presso, Baleno hatchbacks and the Brezza SUV.

Maruti Suzuki, which began its export journey 37 years ago in FY1987 with its first consignment to Hungary, today ships its vehicles to around 100 countries. Demand is strong in regions like Africa, Middle East, Latin America and ASEAN.

Maruti Suzuki, which was the export market leader in FY2022 with 235,670 units and ahead of Hyundai Motor India’s 129,260 units, seems well set to maintain its leader status in the ongoing fiscal year. As of the first nine months of FY2023, Maruti Suzuki has shipped a total of 192,071 units, which is 73,062 units more than Hyundai’s 119,009 units. It is likely that this status will remain unless the Korean carmaker sees a sharp spurt in exports in the remaining months of FY2023.

Hisashi Takeuchi, managing director and CEO, Maruti Suzuki India said, “Crossing the 200,000 milestone in exports for the second consecutive year signifies the trust, quality, reliability, performance, and affordability of our products. This achievement further aligns with our strong commitment to the Government of India’s ‘Make in India’ initiative to manufacture products to delight global customers.”

He added, “We are thankful for the support from our parent company Suzuki Motor Corporation to enable us to leverage a wider distribution network across the globe. Further, adding more models to our portfolio helped sustain excitement in the export markets.”

Looking to accelerate exports, inks ties with Kamarajar Port
The carmaker is looking to accelerate its export numbers and last month saw it sign a five-year contract with Kamarajar Port Ltd for export of its passenger vehicles to global markets. Kamarajar Port (erstwhile Ennore Port) will be used for export shipments to Africa, Middle East, Latin America, ASEAN, Oceania and SAARC regions.

Kamarajar Port is located on the Coromandel coast, about 24km north of Chennai Port, Chennai. It will be used to export around 20,000 cars annually and becomes the fourth port, after Mumbai Port, Mundra Port and Pipavav Port, to be used by Maruti Suzuki for its overseas vehicle shipments. The company will continue to export from the Mumbai Port, Mundra Port and Pipavav Port.

To facilitate automobile exports, a car-cum-general cargo berth has been developed and commissioned by Kamarajar Port for handling automobile units.

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