Maruti Suzuki India, Tata Motors report slowdown in vehicle sales

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. and Tata Motors, reported a drop in sales for new vehicles in June. Vehicle sales at Maruti dropped 9% to 80,298 in June the same period a year ago. Tata Motors, on the other hand, reported a slight drop of one percent, to 66,358 units. Tata’s vehicle exports suffered a huge drop, however, of 21%. Rising inflation and higher interest rates and fuel costs are being blamed for the drop. However, Deepak Jain, an analyst with Sharekhan Ltd. Said he expects “some kind of revival in sales in the second half which makes up for nearly 60% of total sales in a financial year.” (July 1, 2011)