Wholesale dispatches of cars and utility vehicles continued to improve in March, compared to February, on the back of sustained improvement in economic activity, people opting for personal mobility options and manufacturers’ decision to increase stocks at dealerships.
To be sure, the surge in cases of Covid-19 across the country and increase in vehicle prices from April could derail the recovery in the coming months, experts warned.
Sales of passenger vehicles rose by 3.39% month-on-month to 2,90,939 units in March on the back of a 6.9% jump in dispatches of utility vehicles to 1,22,250 and a more moderate 1.19% increase in passenger car sales to 1,56,985 units.
Vehicle sales are usually compared on a corresponding basis, but in the second half of March last year, automakers had to close down their factories and showrooms, as India went into a lockdown. Operations remained suspended till the first half of May and in some cases early June.
As a result, wholesale dispatches of passenger vehicles more than doubled from just 1,35,196 units in March last year.
Maruti Suzuki India Ltd— the country’s largest carmaker— reported a near-flat 0.9% monthly growth in March. The second largest vehicle manufacturer, Hyundai Motor India Ltd, increased vehicle dispatches by 1.93% to 52,600 units.
{{/usCountry}}Maruti Suzuki India Ltd— the country’s largest carmaker— reported a near-flat 0.9% monthly growth in March. The second largest vehicle manufacturer, Hyundai Motor India Ltd, increased vehicle dispatches by 1.93% to 52,600 units.
{{/usCountry}}Tata Motors saw wholesales jump by 8.9%, while Mahindra and Mahindra’s dispatches also increased by 8.5%.
Most of the leading automakers replenished inventory at dealerships after improved retail sales over the last five months and high waiting periods on popular products due to supply chain constraints also led to a substantial dip in stocks.
Automobile sales in India are counted as factory dispatches and not retail sales.
According to Kenichi Ayukawa, president, Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam), a deep structural slowdown in the auto industry even before the pandemic, combined with the impact of covid-19 pushed all vehicle segments back by many years.
“Recovery from here will require time and efforts, by all stakeholders. There is uncertainty in the value chain owing to semiconductors, lockdowns and raw material. In an environment of uncertainty, instead of trying to predict the future, we will all work hard to create it,” he added.
Dispatches of two-wheelers also rose by 4.9% to around 15 lakh units as manufacturers expect better retail sales in the coming months due to the wedding and crop harvest seasons. Sales of motorcycles increased by 9.19% to nearly 10 lakh, while scooters declined marginally by 1.5% to 4,64,744 units.
Overall in FY21, wholesale of passenger vehicles declined by 2.2% to 27.1 lakh units, while two-wheelers dropped by 13.19% to 1.5 crore.