Suzuki Motor Corporation, the Japanese automotive giant, is betting big on India as a key driver of its global growth strategy. The company expects the Indian market to expand by 2% in the fiscal year 2025, with its subsidiary Maruti Suzuki poised to outpace industry growth.

India has emerged as a bright spot for Suzuki, accounting for an impressive 89% of the company's global sales growth in the last fiscal year. While several key markets experienced declines, Maruti Suzuki posted a 9% increase in volume, selling 1.79 million units in fiscal 2024. This performance solidified India's position as Suzuki's largest market, representing 56.6% of the company's global sales.

Suzuki's optimism for the Indian market is driven by several factors:

1. SUV Portfolio Expansion: The company is aggressively expanding its SUV lineup in India to meet growing consumer demand. Suzuki has introduced nearly half a dozen new SUV models in the past 12-18 months, ranging from the entry-level Fronx to the Brezza, Grand Vitara, and Jimny. This strategy has paid off, with SUV sales more than doubling from 202,000 units in FY23 to 443,000 units in FY24.

2. Production Capacity Increase: To support its growth ambitions, Suzuki plans to secure a production capacity of around 4 million units in India by FY2030. This expansion includes a new production line with an annual capacity of 100,000 units that started operations at the Manesar plant in April 2024.

3. Market Share Recovery: While Maruti Suzuki's market share in India has declined to around 42% from over 50% a couple of years ago, the company aims to regain a 50% market share through investments in new technology development and production expansion.

4. Strong Financial Performance: Suzuki reported a 15.8% year-on-year increase in net sales to 5,374.3 billion yen and a 32.8% increase in operating profit to 465.6 billion yen for the last financial year. The company expects to achieve record sales and profits in the current fiscal year due to higher unit sales.

5. Long-term Vision: Suzuki is committed to contributing to India's economic growth and aims to achieve carbon neutrality in the country by 2070, in line with government targets.

As part of its growth strategy, Suzuki is also eyeing expansion in Africa, leveraging the knowledge and business models developed in India. The company sees Africa as its next pillar of growth after the Indian market.

With these initiatives in place, Suzuki is well-positioned to capitalize on the growing Indian automotive market and strengthen its global presence. The company plans to unveil new strategies in various fields, including technology, and will announce a new mid-term management plan by the end of FY2024.