Maruti Suzuki Posts Record Q2 Sales but Profit Falls 27% — Commodity Costs Bite

The Best and Worst of Both Worlds

Maruti Suzuki India reported its highest-ever quarterly sales volume of 6,96,654 vehicles for the three months to 30 September, up 26.5 per cent year on year. Revenue from operations rose 26.1 per cent to ₹53,340 crore. Net profit fell 26.9 per cent to ₹2,414.9 crore, and operating EBIT dropped 17.1 per cent to ₹2,803.7 crore.

The arithmetic behind that gap is unusually clean. Material cost rose from 75.7 per cent of sales to 79.9 per cent — a 420 basis point jump. Maruti's own presentation lists three negative factors: adverse commodity prices in the context of the West Asia conflict, adverse foreign exchange movement, and lower non-operating income because of mark-to-market losses on invested surplus. Improved realisations, better operating leverage and cost reduction only partly offset them.

Where the Volume Came From

Metric	Q2 FY27	Q2 FY26	Change
Sales volume	6,96,654	5,50,874	+26.5%
Net sales	₹53,340 crore	₹42,332 crore	+26.1%
Operating EBITDA	₹4,764 crore	₹5,085 crore	-6.3%
Operating EBIT	₹2,804 crore	₹3,382 crore	-17.1%
Profit after tax	₹2,415 crore	₹3,303 crore	-26.9%
EBITDA margin	8.9%	12.0%	-310 bps

The mix is doing what Maruti wanted. Small car sales grew 35.9 per cent and SUV sales 68.2 per cent, taking domestic passenger vehicle market share up 2.2 percentage points to 40.8 per cent. For the half year, volumes hit a record 13,79,378 units, up 27.9 per cent, of which 11,46,523 were domestic and 2,32,855 were exports. Exports in the quarter alone slipped marginally to 1,08,119 units.

Demand is still running ahead of supply. Network inventory was about 17 days at the end of September, and pending bookings stood at roughly 2 lakh vehicles. Chairman R C Bhargava has said small cars remain in demand alongside SUVs, and CNG is growing faster than the company expected — Maruti is now tracking towards 9 lakh CNG vehicles sold this year.

The Price Question Nobody Wants to Ask Out Loud

Managing director Hisashi Takeuchi used the earnings call to back the industry's request to delay BS-VII, telling reporters that the norms will have a price impact and that SIAM is still discussing the roadmap with the government. He also said Maruti is holding volumes above last year despite a very high base created by the September 2025 GST reforms.

Read the two statements together and the direction is obvious. A company absorbing 420 basis points of material cost either passes some of it on or accepts lower margins for another two quarters. Maruti's own guidance of 8 to 10 per cent domestic growth this fiscal year suggests it does not intend to buy volume with profit indefinitely.

What This Means for Buyers

If you are in the market for a Maruti this festive season, the ₹2.7 lakh crore question is whether the discounts you see in October survive into January. Maruti has an order backlog to clear and an extra production day already worked in October, which argues for deals staying put through Diwali. A price revision in the December-to-February window is the more likely outcome once the festive push is done.

For anyone weighing a purchase now, our sales data section shows which models are actually moving, and the EMI calculator will tell you what a post-revision price does to your monthly outgo.

(Sources: Maruti Suzuki India investor presentation and results filing for the quarter ended 30 September 2026; NDTV Profit; Business Standard; Moneycontrol; Zee Business; The Hindu BusinessLine interview with Hisashi Takeuchi, 27 October 2026. Images: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0 and CC BY-SA 4.0)

::KEY_NUMBERS:: Sales volume | 6,96,654 units Revenue | ₹53,340 crore PAT | ₹2,415 crore (-26.9%) Material cost | 79.9% of sales Market share | 40.8% ::TLDR:: Record quarterly volume, up 26.5% year on year, and record H1 volumes of 13,79,378 units EBITDA margin fell from 12.0% to 8.9%; EBIT down 17.1% Small cars grew 35.9%, SUVs 68.2%, domestic market share up 2.2 percentage points Inventory at about 17 days and around 2 lakh pending bookings at the end of September ::CHART:: type: bar title: Maruti Suzuki Q2 FY27 versus Q2 FY26 (₹ crore) labels: Revenue Q2 FY26,Revenue Q2 FY27,PAT Q2 FY26,PAT Q2 FY27 values: 42332,53340,3303,2415 source: Maruti Suzuki India investor presentation, 27 October 2026 ::TIMELINE:: September 2025 | GST reform boosts the base quarter December 2025 | Suzuki Motor Gujarat merges into Maruti Suzuki 27 October 2026 | Q2 FY27 results announced October 2026 | Maruti works an extra production day to meet festive demand ::GLOSSARY:: EBITDA | operating profit before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation Mark-to-market | valuing an investment at today's price, which can create paper losses Basis points | one-hundredth of a percentage point ::PULLQUOTE:: Maruti is selling more cars than it ever has and keeping less of each rupee than it did a year ago. That is the whole quarter in one line. ::PROS:: Highest-ever quarterly and half-yearly volumes Domestic market share up 2.2 percentage points to 40.8% SUV volumes up 68.2% and small cars up 35.9% CNG volumes tracking towards 9 lakh units this year ::CONS:: Material cost up 420 bps to 79.9% of sales EBIT down 17.1% year on year Non-operating income hit by mark-to-market losses Exports slipped to 1,08,119 units from 1,10,487 ::POLL:: Does Maruti's margin squeeze change your buying plan? || No, I will buy before prices rise || Yes, I will wait for discounts || I am switching to CNG ::SOURCES:: Maruti Suzuki India investor presentation and stock exchange filing, 27 October 2026