Passenger automobile makers in February are estimated to dispatch 360,000 models to their sellers, the very best ever for February in any yr. Sustained demand, coupled with new mannequin launches, is more likely to notch up gross sales by 8% year-on-year, as per trade estimates.
It could be the primary time in seven years when February will see two consecutive years of progress on YoY foundation. Within the first 10 months of FY24, passenger automotive makers bought 3.46 million autos, up 7.8% year-on-year. A swelling stock on the gross sales channels – 300,000 models on the finish of February from 262,000 to 263,000 models to start with of the month is prompting firms to tread with warning.
“In keeping with the expectations, although the general demand stays sturdy, bookings have seen a decline of 4-5% yr on-year because the pent-up demand is behind us and provides have absolutely caught up with demand,” mentioned Shashank Srivastava, senior govt officer – gross sales and advertising and marketing, at automotive market chief Maruti Suzuki India.
Often, March due to being the final month of the fiscal is a month of excessive dispatches, however this yr could possibly be completely different attributable to swelling stock – although nonetheless lower than 30 days, might immediate firms to curtail dispatches, mentioned Srivastava. Owing to a excessive base impact Q2 of FY23, he expects gross sales progress within the subsequent monetary yr to begin plateauing from July onwards.”Tarun Garg, chief working officer at Hyundai Motor India, mentioned Hyundai “Is receiving a strong demand” for its merchandise, reflecting positively on its market place. The corporate has acquired over 70,000 bookings for the lately launched new Creta, and Exter too continues its beneficial run. “We’re carefully monitoring market dynamics and preserve a cautiously optimistic outlook as we navigate potential shifts in shopper sentiment,” he mentioned.
Passenger automobile quantity will hit a brand new peak for the third straight time subsequent fiscal, rising 5-7% on a excessive base of 6-8% estimated for the present fiscal, as sport utility autos (SUVs) race forward when demand for automobiles and exports stay muted, Crisil mentioned in a press release on Monday.
Manish Raj Singhania, president at Federation of Vehicle Sellers Affiliation mentioned, although demand stays sturdy, stock at gross sales channels are at an elevated stage as automakers proceed to dispatch much more than what the demand is. “Until they curtail dispatches to 275,000 models, vendor inventory won’t come down,” he mentioned.
The sustenance of the present month-to-month gross sales will take India’s PV gross sales full fiscal yr tally to shut to 4.2 million-the highest ever. Barring December 2023, all months of the present fiscal yr had gross sales quantity greater than three lakh models leading to a median month-to-month gross sales of 346,553 models.
