No Festive Boost Yet For Retail Auto Sales
Automakers pushed inventories to dealerships ahead of the festive season. But here’s the problem...
Automakers pushed inventories to dealerships ahead of the festive season in October anticipating a pick-up in sales but data from the ground isn’t encouraging.
Factory-gate shipments of cars, two-wheelers, commercial vehicles and tractors were significantly higher than retail sales in the last two months, leading to a build-up in inventory levels which has crossed the 30-day mark.
Vehicles registered during the nine-day Navaratri festival remained 11.5% lower than last year, according to data from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
Retail auto sales in the festive month of Dasara rose 4.1% sequentially to 14.06 lakh units but is 24.1% below levels seen in October 2019, according to data compiled by BloombergQuint from the website of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
Lockdown
Auto registrations continue to rise on a month-on-month basis even as the government is opening up the economy in a phased manner. But sales are yet to reach pre-Covid levels or those seen during the same period a year ago.
Two Wheelers
Two-wheeler makers pushed high inventory at dealerships, but demand hasn’t met expectations. Registrations of the top two-wheeler makers tracked by BloombergQuint saw its retail registrations jump by 1.4% month-on-month in October while it was down 28.5 percent over same period last year.
Passenger Cars
Passenger carmaker was the only category to post growth in registrations during the nine-day Navaratri festival compared to last year. While demand grew nearly 25.4% sequentially, it remained subdued on a year-on-year basis. Retail registrations were down 12.8% in October compared to the same period a year ago.
Commercial Vehicles
Commercial vehicle registrations have picked up along with rise in economic activity. Sales of buses remain muted as demand from schools is yet to revive. On a month-on-month basis, registrations rose 19.7% but were down 40.8% compared to the year-ago period.
Tractors
Tractor sales showed signs of slowing demand as the monsoon draws to a close. Sales fell 20% month-on-month but was up 52.7% year-on-year.