Sales numbers for June 2024 are out, and they are surprisingly positive in the luxury car segment. The growth is of such proportions that the top 2 players have recorded their best ever half yearly sales in 2024. Was this the case with the industry as a whole? Discover that in our company-to-company analysis ahead:
2024 Sales analysis of Luxury Car Segment
Mercedes-Benz
The German giant Mercedes Benz took the spot on the luxury cars podium with a half-yearly sales figure of 9262 units from January to June 2024. This was a 9 per cent growth on a yearly basis. Their top-tier Maybach range saw the best growth of 108 per cent in this period. While the numbers may not sound very high, it becomes significant because since their entry in India, Mercedes has had their best year in 2023. The growth over that year is a testament to the fact that the car-buying appetite of the elite is on the rise in a proportion that has never been seen before. It captured 55 per cent of the luxury car market at this time.
BMW
Another German Marque manufacturer follows Mercedes in the luxury car segment in India: BMW. BMW recorded confidence-inspiring numbers in the first half of 2024 between January and June. The exact numbers are 7,098 for cars under the BMW and MINI brands, which means a 21 per cent growth on a yearly basis. If we talk about the sales of the brands individually, BMW sold 6,734 units while Mini’s sales stood at 364, respectively. The number of motorbikes they sold under the BMW Motorrad brand was 3,614.
Audi
Here comes the twist of the tale of sale. Unlike the other two, the third part of the German luxury trio in India struggled in the first quarter. Audi reported a 29 per cent decline in sales in the first half, attributed to supply chain disruptions. The exact number of sales they made stands at 2,477 units, which is drastically lower than its peers. They hope to normalise their supplies and make a comeback in the second half.
Jaguar Land Rover
The English Brand Jaguar Land Rover had a tremendous first half in 2024, with its total sold cars reaching 2,091 units. This is a 51 per cent growth over the sales that it achieved in the same time period in 2023. Jaguar is now planning to introduce many electric vehicles so that it might continue this growth trajectory forward.
Volvo
Volvo, synonymous with safety in the International market, is also trying to gain a foothold in India. Between January and July 2024, they sold 1054 units, which amounted to a mere 3.13 per cent Year-on-Year growth. Volvo has big plans for selling electric cars in India, with an expectation of one-third of sales being from EVs this year and the number increasing to 50 per cent in 1 or 2 years. They eventually want to take this number to 100 per cent.
Lexus
Toyota’s Luxury branch, Lexus, also had a decent first half of 2024. The growth figure of Lexus was 14 per cent on an year-on-year basis. This is after the inclusion of the 60 per cent growth in their SUV portfolio, which was dominated by the RX and NX. The Lexus ES Sedan was the star of the show in the Lexus portfolio, with it taking a 55 per cent share of the brand’s sales.
Conclusion – Luxury Car Sales in 2024
The overall trend of the luxury car makers in suggests an upward trend in the demand for luxury cars in India, with Mercedes leading the charge. It will be interesting to see which company can best capitalize on the electric transition in this race.