Magyar Suzuki sales up in 2018

Automotive

In 2018, Magyar Suzuki led the market in new car sales with a 14.12% share, translating into 19,292 new Suzukis registered in Hungary, according to a press release sent to the Budapest Business Journal.

Work in progress at the Suzuki factory in Esztergom, northwest of Budapest

The number of new Suzuki sales in 2018 exceeded that of 2017 by some 27%. Vitaras, manufactured in Esztergom, accounted for the majority of sales (58%), with 11,127 cars sold. The second most popular model was the S-Cross, with 4,982 cars sold.

Suzuki attributes the success of the Vitara model in Hungary to a refreshed look introduced in the fall of 2018, the 3+7 year warranty program, and the 1.0 and 1.4 liter BoosterJet engines.

In total, Magyar Suzuki sold 171,885 vehicles in 123 countries in 2018. Some 163,291 (95%) of these were manufactured in Esztergom, in the companyʼs third largest factory in the world after Japan and India, according to the press release.

Magyar Suzuki closed 2018 with revenue of EUR 1.95 billion. Hungary is the fifth largest market of the brand after the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Italy. 

Production slightly down, domestic profit up

While the number of Vitaras produced stayed roughly the same in the last two years (121,030 in 2017; 121,089 in 2018), production of the S-Cross model declined slightly, from 55,675 in 2017 to 50,450 in 2018. Suzuki says that the fall in production, despite high demand, is due to the introduction of new EU emission regulations.

Some 65% of Magyar Suzukiʼs net income from sales in Hungary, amounting to EUR 280.47 million, came from cars manufactured in Esztergom. This represents a 18.6% increase in domestic revenues compared to 2017. Furthermore, only 87% of cars were made for export, down from 92% in 2017, which hints at a stronger Hungarian market.

In the first five months of 2019, 3,649 Vitaras and 3,793 S-Crosses were registered, meaning that both cars remain bestsellers in the SUV and Category C crossover segments, respectively. Including imported models, some 9,075 new Suzukis were registered in January-May 2019. The company now has a 14.9% market share on the Hungarian car market in 2019 so far.

Growth in motorcycles, boat engines

The company experienced a strong year on two wheels and in the water as well. Magyar Suzuki exported 1,484 boat engines in 2017, with an especially strong growth among engines with a performance in the range of 150-350 HP. In this category, 180% more engines were registered in 2018 than the year before. The boat engine branch has been the center of the firmʼs CEE production since 2017, and is regarded as a market leader with 367 registered engines.

The motorcycle branch of the company became the distributor with the highest market share in Europe for the third year in a row. Magyar Suzukiʼs motorcycle sales were up 23% last year, increasing the market share to 16%.

In total, the company sold cars, motorcycles, and boat engines to 123 countries, including Hungary. Manufacturing plans for 2019 have been revised in the light of the results, as Magyar Suzuki now plans to make 185,000 vehicles, instead of the originally proposed 179,000.

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