Rumour: Chevrolet might exit India

According to media reports, General Motors is rumoured to be planning to wind up its operations in India in the near future. An official announcement regarding the same is expected to be made next month (May 2017).

General Motors has been present in the Indian car market with its Chevrolet brand since a fairly long time. However, the company hasn't been able to garner a significant market share. Though cars like the Spark and Beat did manage to sell in satisfactory numbers in their initial days, lack of new launches or updates to the existing line-up and an uninspiring after-sales experience are believed to have caused the sales of the company's cars to eventually drop.

Owing to the lack of major revenue, General Motors' Indian arm has been recording huge losses from the past couple of years. For the year 2015-16, the company's losses were four times its net worth. The company has also put on hold an investment of around US$1 billion and indicated that it would re-analyse its strategy for India.

General Motors will be stopping vehicle production at its Halol (Gujarat) plant by the end of April 2017. It is also being rumoured that it has already halted production of right hand drive vehicles at its second plant in Talegaon, near Pune. The company is reportedly manufacturing only the left-hand drive Beat hatchback at this plant that is meant for international markets.

Source: ET Auto