With all-time high sales during August, September and October this year, Passenger vehicle (PV) dispatches by carmakers to retailers during the festive period of 91 days were also the highest. As per industry insiders, PV wholesale during the festive season, which commenced on August 17 (Onam) and culminated on November 15 (Bhai Dooj), were up by 41 percent to 11,38,000 units compared to last year.
Nearly 8,10,000 units of cars, utility vehicles and sedans were sold during 71 days of the festive season last year. PV wholesales during the last 47 days were also up by 14.5 percent this year YOY, as per industry analysts. The previous sales peak was during the festive period of 92 days in 2020 when 9,40,000 units of vehicles were sold by carmakers to retailers.
Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL), which commands a lion’s share of the domestic PV market, replicated the growth pattern of the overall PV industry. During the festive periods of 2020, 2022 and 2023, the company sold 4,71,000 units (36 percent up YOY), 3,40,000 units (2.2 percent down YOY) and 4,90,000 units (44 percent up YOY), respectively.
“The PV industry sales during the festival season were reasonably strong and crossed the one million mark for the first time. The previous highest was 9.34 lakh units in 2020, stated Shashank Srivastava, Senior Executive Officer, Marketing and Sales at MSIL. He added, “The inventory levels, however, remain elevated and if the retail trends are at a lower level we could see lower wholesale in the industry in the next two months.”
When asked about the growth drivers, Srivastava said, “One of the key factors, which helped in the larger sales in this year’s festive season was not only the larger number of days but also that the OEMs were able to increase production due to easing of the semiconductor components availability. This also helped reduce the waiting period for the models where previously there was a huge pendency of bookings.”
Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL), the second largest carmaker, marked the auspicious day of Dhanteras by delivering an unprecedented 10,293 units, surpassing last year's figure by more than double. The overall festive period starting from Onam in Kerala and ending with Bhai Dooj has seen a “great response” from customers for Hyundai vehicles, the company claims.
Tarun Garg, COO, HMIL, claims that this large number of deliveries stands testament to the “overwhelming admiration” its customers have for the Hyundai brand.
“Talking about numbers, we have retailed 1,65,000 vehicles from August 17 (Chingam – the month in the Malayalam calendar when Onam is celebrated) till Bhai Dooj. This is a growth of 9 percent over the same period last year. Our SUVs comprising Creta, Venue and the newly-launched Hyundai Exter have especially seen major traction and SUVs contribute to around 65 percent of these 1,65,000 vehicles retailed by us.”
A Tata Motors spokesperson also revealed that from Shraddh (September 29 to October 14) to Bhai Dooj its deliveries have witnessed a 15 percent growth over last year.
“The response to our newly launched Nexon, Harrier, Safari and the iCNG range has been particularly gratifying. The festive period, especially during Navratri and Diwali, saw us achieve good delivery numbers, reflecting the trust and preference of our customers," the spokesperson stated in an email response to queries sent by Moneycontrol.
The Federation of Automotive Dealers Association (FADA) stated that it counts the festive period of 42 days from the first day of Navratra to 10 days after Dhanteras. It also maintained that it doesn’t count Onam and Ganesh Chaturthi as they are state-specific festivals and sales are high only in Kerala and Maharashtra during those days.
“During the 42-day period, it has been very good for PV retails. SUVs continue to spring forward and dominate the entire PV market. In October, the SUV market contributed around 60 percent of overall sales. The continued vigour that the PV segment has shown in the market despite reaching a lot of peaks last year, we can comfortably say that the PV market will see a higher side single-digit growth for the 42-day festive period this year,” Manish Raj Singhania, President, FADA told Moneycontrol.
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