The auto sector, which has been hurtling downhill for sometime now, came out of August more battered and bruised, data shared by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) on Monday showed. Passenger car sales, which seem to have ran out of gas with buyers postponing their purchases, was the worst hit, declining by 41 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to 1,15,957 units against 1,96,847 units in the same month last year.
Passenger vehicle sales also declined by around 32 per cent to 1,96,524 units during last month against 2,87,198 units in the corresponding month last year.
Market leader Maruti Suzuki India had reported a 36 per cent YoY decline in sales during August to 93,173 units (1,45,895 units).
Hyundai Motor India also reported a double-digit YoY decline in sales (17 per cent) to 38,205 units (45,801 units).
Honda Cars India and Tata Motors, in particular, reported the most dismal numbers, selling less than half of the units they sold last year in August.
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According to Ashish Modani, Vice President & Co-Head, Corporate Ratings, ICRA Ltd, overall vehicle sales declined in the backdrop of subdued consumer sentiments and a tighter financing environment.
“Deferment of purchases by consumers in anticipation of GST revision and steep discounting ahead of BS-VI rollout further dented demand. The government has taken various initiatives to ease the liquidity crunch, though it is l unlikely to provide any immediate respite to the industry,” he added.
In the commercial vehicle segment, sales declined by 39 per cent to 51,897 units in August, a drop of 39 per cent YoY compared with 84,668 units in August 2018. Within commercial vehicles, medium and heavy CVs took a knock of 54.3 per cent, as sales declined to 15,573 units.
In the two-wheeler segment, both scooter and motorcycle sales declined by a little more than 22 per cent YoY.