Shares of auto majors such as Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki, Hero MotoCorp and Ashok Leyland crashed between 0.9 per cent and 2.1 per cent in early trade on Tuesday, as they announced > weak sales numbers for June.
In fact, the BSE Auto Index was the worst performer, tumbling 0.72 per cent. The BSE Sensex was flat but in the negative zone while the BSE-500 and BSE-200 are ruling with almost negligible gains.
Market leader Maruti Suzuki reported a 12.56 per cent dip in total sales (including exports) over June 2012. Tata Motors reported a decline of 18 per cent in sales while Mahindra & Mahindra’s sales dipped 7.8 per cent.
M&M shares dipped 0.4 per cent.
The automobile sector continued to drive in the slow lane in June, with most companies reporting lower sales during the month. The reasons range from a falling rupee and rising fuel costs to high loan costs.