Hard times for Indian auto industry are far from over as the monthly sales figures of car manufacturers Maruti Suzuki and General Motors showed drop in volumes while other major automobile manufacturers including Tata Motors, Hyundai Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra did not release their monthly sales reports on 1st January.

Maruti Suzuki, the largest auto maker of India is the market leader with about 50 per cent of the domestic car market, has reported a 10% drop in the month of December sales at 56,293 vehicles . December is the third consecutive month when Maruti Suzuki is reporting a decline in sales. The company reported an 8% drop in the month of October at 59,127 units in the domestic market and the sales further slipped to 47,704 in November, which marked a 27% decline.

General Motors India also clocked 4,041 units (6,309) in December, 36% less than it sold during the month of December last year. However, the company official said, on an annual basis, its sales grew by 9.5% in the calendar year 2008 at 65,702 units. Due the market has slowed down from the month of September, we could not meet our target.