Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) has released the monthly sales numbers for December 2021, during which the company sold 10,832 units in India. Compared to 7,487 units sold during the same month in 2020, the company saw a year-on-year growth of 45 per cent. As for the entire calendar year, between January and December 2021, the Japanese carmakers sold 1,30,768 units in India, which is a year-on-year growth of 72 per cent compared to 76,111 units sold in CY 2020. In both cases, we have to consider the fact that the market situation was different much dire in 2020 with the nationwide lockdown and other COVID-19 related challenges. In fact, the auto industry even witnessed zero sales in April 2020, so, this massive growth should be considered as a one-off anomaly.
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Having said that, 2021 was also plagued with its own set of challenges, like the second wave of coronavirus and the global shortage for semiconductors chips. However, Toyota says demand picked up in the second half of the year and is gravitating back to pre-Covid times. In fact, in the month of December 2021, Toyota registered the highest customer orders for the entire year.
Toyota says that the Innova Crysta and the Fortuner continued to dominate their respective segments
Talking about the company's sales performance, V. Wiseline Sigamani, Associate General Manager (AGM), Sales and Strategic Marketing, TKM said, "We began the year with a fresh start and renewed hopes of recovery. However, the new fiscal brought in the devastating second wave, overcoming which, took great resilience of not only businesses but even the society at large. The latter half of the year saw demand picking up and the same can be attributed to factors aiding pent up demand initially, and further fuelled by demand due to the festive season. Currently, the surge in demand though is sustaining on its own."
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With regards to model wise demand, Toyota says that the Innova Crysta and the Fortuner continued to dominate their respective segments and more so after we launched the Legender trim. The Legender variant of the Fortuner has received a huge response from buyers, and Toyota says, it has become the flagship model in this segment. Apart from these, Toyota also sells the Glanza and Urban Cruiser in the entry-level space, along with premium models like the Camry Hybrid and the Vellfire MPV.
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Right now Toyota India is gearing up to launch the Hilux pick-up SUV in 2022
Commenting on a plan for 2022, Sigamani added, "Looking forward in 2022, our aim is to expand our footprints with a special focus on Tier 2 & 3 markets. Growth for TKM is not just defined in terms of sales numbers but with an enhanced product portfolio, we hope we will be able to cater to more segments as well as newer markets in 2022 and beyond."
Right now Toyota is gearing up to launch the Hilux pick-up SUV, which will first of its kind vehicle from the company in India. It will compete with the Isuzu D-Max V-Cross.
