FY13 car sales fall 7%; SIAM sees 3-5% growth in FY14
Passenger car sales in India fell 7 percent in FY2013, the first such decline in over a decade, Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers said on Wednesday. The industry body is, however, hopeful of a pickup in FY14.
April 10, 2013 / 16:10 IST
Moneycontrol Bureau
Passenger car sales in India fell 7 percent in FY2013, the first such decline in over a decade, Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers said on Wednesday. The industry body is, however, hopeful of a pickup in FY14.Sales across passenger cars, medium & heavy commercial vehicles and two-wheelers have been hit amid expensive loans, rising fuel prices and the overall economic slowdown too has dampned sentiments.The slowdown has hit truck and bus makers like Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland and car makers including Maruti Suzuki and other domestic and multi-national rivals hard.According to the monthly data published by the industry body, passenger car sales slumped 23 percent year-on-year to 1.8 lakh units in March. CV sales last month were down 6 percent from a year ago to 84,956 units and total two-wheeler sales declined near 7 percent to 11 lakh units. Motorcycle sales slipped 8 percent to 7.8 lakh units. Overall, last financial year, CV sales were down 2 percent and motorcycle sales saw only marginal growth.The overall economic activity remains weak, hurting M&HCV sales, SIAM pointed out. Weak rural demand had also hit passenger vehicles sales, it added.Total vehicle exports, meanwhile, inched up 3 percent to 2.3 lakh units in March. FY14 FORECASTSIAM has had to revise its sales forecast several times in FY13. It had initially predicted a double digit growth in car sales, but finally cut it to 0-1 percent as sales remained in the slow lane.This year, it is more cautious and expects car sales to rise 3-5 percent. Utility vehicles, which has seen good growth, helped by new launches in the compact UV segment, are expected to clock 11-13 percent growth.CV sales in FY14 are likely to rise 7-9 percent, with light truck sales growing 10-12 percent. M&HCV sales will continue to see slow growth (1-3 percent growth forecast). SIAM expects motorcycle sales to grow 6-8 percent in 2013-14.Nachiket Kelkar
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