Date:25/12/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/12/25/stories/2008122556181600.htm

Business

Maruti may cut production if slowdown continues

Special Correspondent

— PHOTO: SANDEEP SAXENA

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY: Shinzo Nakanishi (left), Managing Director and CEO, and S. C. Bhargava, Chairman, Maruti Suzuki India, at the unveiling of national road safety mission programme in New Delhi on Wednesday.

NEW DELHI: Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL) on Wednesday said it might consider a cut in its production if the current trend of economic slowdown continues.

Stating that sales growth in the remaining part of the current fiscal is likely to remain flat, MSIL Managing Director Shinzo Nakanishi said there had been a slowdown in demand across the world, including China, India, Brazil and Russia. Their focus was that inventories do not pile up at dealers end, and if this happened, cut in production might take place, he added.

“We are focussing on the network stock. If the network stock overflows, then we will have to readjust our productions,” he said, adding that MSIL would produce a few per cent less in December compared with the same month last year. In November, the company’s passenger car sales dipped by 24.8 per cent to 43,258 units from 57,554 units in the same month last year.

MSIL also expects to start exports of newly-launched A-Star to Japanese carmaker Nissan by February-March next year, while that for its parent Suzuki would start from next month. MSIL also announced that it would train at least 5-lakh drivers in the next three years, out of which over one-lakh will be from the economically weaker section. “Modernisation of automobile industry was incomplete unless people learnt to drive safely for themselves and for others on the road.

The country does not have infrastructure to teach people how to drive correctly. As part of our corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative, we have taken upon ourselves to play a part in training drivers,” MSIL Chairman R. C. Bhargava said after inaugurating ‘National Road Safety Mission’ by the company.

MSIL at present operates two Institutes of Driving Training & Research (IDTR) and 47 driving schools. This training initiative of the company has benefited about 5-lakh people so far, out of which over 50 per cent are women. “Over the next one year, we plan to add 4-5 IDTRs and are targeting 130 new driving schools by March 2010,” Mr. Bhargava added.