India's Maruti to raise car prices by 2-4% from Jan

[MUMBAI] Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, India's largest carmaker, plans to raise prices of its cars by 2 to 4 per cent from January due to an increase in input costs, its executive director RS Kalsi said on Monday.

Maruti joins carmakers including Indian units of BMW AG and General Motors Co that also plan to raise prices of their cars by up to 5 per cent from January, the companies have said earlier.

The increase in prices come despite slowing sales of passenger vehicles which are expected to grow at less than 4 per cent this fiscal year that started on April 1, according to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers.

The industry body had earlier said sales would grow between five per cent and 10 per cent in this fiscal year.

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, India's top utility vehicle maker, also raised prices of its passenger and commercial vehicles, and tractors in November to offset rise in input costs.

REUTERS