Automotive – Wizikey Top Newsmakers India 2019

In what has been a slow year for the industry, who made the most news in the automotive sector? Read on to know who made the most news in the Automotive industry in India in 2019. Wizikey Top Newsmakers 2019 is driven by data from a year of Indian news, analyzed by Wizikey using its AI and ML-based technology.

The automotive sector, in a developing economy, is an indicator of the purchasing power of the masses at large. Hence, when the industry was going through one of the worst phases in recent history, the media ran wild with the news and its implications all over. While this is what kept the industry in the limelight, the year also saw every major company come out with newer model/upgrades to their lineups. 

While the slowdown and its effect on the industry was a common theme in the media landscape, quotes made by respective corporate heads and other dignitaries also made sure that they remain in the public eye, for better or for worse. The top 5 Newsmakers in the category were:

• Tata Motors
• Mahindra
• Maruti Suzuki
• Hyundai
• Honda

Commenting on the release of top automotive newsmakers report, Anshul Sushil, Founder and CEO at Wizikey said, “Being one of the biggest industries and contributor to the GDP, it is always interesting to see the sentiment of the Automotive Industry in the media. The AI and ML capabilities of Wizikey is helping us see the insights which help us understand the media landscape better.”

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Tata Motors

Tata Motors had a bittersweet year in the news, while it made News for its new launches and appointments, majority of the mentions were about the crash in sales numbers, debt piling up and widening losses. With the launch of the much-awaited Tata Tigor EV and Tata Harrier, Tata Motors made headlines for learning from their International portfolio of Jaguar and Land Rover and topping it off with the Indian flavor. However, there 2 of their top 3 News were about the Indian Market slowdown and the rising debt on the organization. 

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Mahindra and Mahindra

Mahindra & Mahindra was also hit by the sales decline in the automotive sector, It also paused production various times at its plants. The starting of the year saw the launch of Mahindra XUV 300 which created a lot of buzz in the media about its compact size. Mahindra garnered the most mentions when Tax deduction on EVs was announced by the government because it was the sole beneficiary having 2-3 successful EVs in its portfolio. Mahindra Tractor sales increase also created a lot of news for them. 

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Maruti Suzuki

Maruti suffered the most among the declining sales in the auto industry. Maruti started its year with the new Wagon R launch in India and also expanded its true value network in India. It also announced that it will be discontinuing Diesel cars by 2020 which created a lot of news. Meanwhile, it also shed 1000 employees from its plants which garnered media attention. Maruti also announced that it sold two lakh BSVI vehicles in two months amidst the slowdown which generated a lot of media attention.

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Hyundai

Hyundai created a lot of buzz with its car launches most of which came from the launch of their new electric vehicle. While the automobile sector has been in a slowdown, Hyundai has been able to gain substantial visibility through its frequent launches and by announcing record utility vehicle sales during the year. However, Hyundai did find itself in deep waters towards the tail end of the year when some of its customers filed an FIR against them for cheating. 

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Honda

Honda’s year in the limelight started on a high with a couple of launches. Although, the bulk of the coverage came when the automobile slowdown set in. The fall in demand was a huge blow for the entire industry and Honda was no exception. Being one of the biggest players in the automotive sectors, Honda was frequently mentioned in articles relating to the drop in vehicle sales, job cuts, etc. The brand also received substantial coverage when they reported a drop in sales.