The export journey of home-grown two-wheeler makers is gaining momentum as they post significant growth in shipments across a larger market.

The booming two-wheeler exports, thanks to the deeper penetration of Indian companies in markets such as Africa, Latin America and ASEAN, come at a time when the domestic market is going through a slowdown due to stagnant demand.

While motorcycle shipments during 2018-2019 have grown by 15 per cent at about 2.9 million units, scooter exports registered an increase of 27 per cent at 3.98 lakh units during the year. Though the growth rate in bikes has come down (from 22 per cent in 2017-18), expansion to more markets has helped maintain the double-digits export growth.

Bajaj is the largest exporter of two-wheelers from India, followed by TVS Motor and Hero MotoCorp.

Bajaj, which accounted for 59 per cent of the country’s bike exports in 2018-19, saw its exports grow about 22 per cent at 16,95,553 units during the fiscal ended March 31.

To reduce the dependency on the African region, Bajaj Auto entered into ASEAN and Latin American countries. The company sells its bikes across Africa, Latin America, ASEAN and the Middle East.

TVS Motor, the second largest two-wheeler exporter, reported 24 per cent increase in its bike exports at 5.46 lakh units. The company’s scooter exports grew 67 per cent at 59,749 units in 2018-19. It is serving about 60 countries across the world.

Hero MotoCorp’s bike exports increased by five per cent at 1.87 lakh units. But its scooter exports fell to 20,871 units from 26,319 units in 2018-19. Its total exports grew 12 per cent at 2.04 lakh units in 2017-18. It sells its two-wheelers in 40 countries across Asia, Africa, South and Central America.

Two-wheeler exports, which have been on a growth trajectory since Q4 FY2017, peaked in Q1 FY2019 with a year-on-year growth of 30 per cent. The double-digit growth in exports in FY19 has been driven by the recovery in key markets such as Nigeria and Egypt. It was further boosted by the entry of Indian companies into new markets in Latin America and ASEAN, according to Subrata Ray, Group Vice-President – Corporate Ratings, ICRA.

“Though these markets are small, they have high growth potential and incrementally offer diversification benefits. Going forward, improvement in export volume will likely continue, but at a moderate pace, as the impact of high base catches up,” he added.

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