September vehicle retail sales up but dispatches from cos slip

MUMBAI: Retail sales of vehicles improved last month, bringing some respite to the industry that has been witnessing a slowdown for more than a year, as sales from manufacturers to dealers declined for the 11th straight month.

Vehicle sales from dealerships to consumers collectively improved 6.5% year on year in September, as per vehicle registration data sourced by industry body Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam). “We have seen things improve over the last 10-12 days,” Siam president Rajan Wadhera said on Friday. “Green shoots are visible now. The festive season, measures announced by the government and high discounts have enabled sales growth, and helped in improving buyer sentiment in general.”

Wholesale of vehicles, however, declined 22.4% in September, and automakers continued to curtail production to reduce the inventory accumulated in their channels.


Retail of passenger vehicles, or cars, improved 8% on year last month while that of two-wheelers was up 6.5%. Three-wheeler retail rose 22.6% in the month, but sales of commercial vehicles like trucks and buses continued to be in the red with a decline of 9.2%. The slight improvement in sales was on a lower base as the current sales slowdown had already started in September 2018.

Also, the numbers are only indicative of the overall sales trend as registration data for three states and a couple of union territories are not yet available. A leading automobile retailer expressed scepticism about the data on retail, noting that while inquiries from customers had increased last month, there seemed to be no improvement in sales on the ground.

On the wholesale side of the business, passenger vehicles dispatches were down 23.7% on year to 223,317 units last month while those of two-wheelers declined 22.1% to 1,656,774 units. Commercial vehicles and three-wheelers sales fell 39% and 3.9% to 58,419 and 66,362 units, respectively. Automakers have been cutting down on their production to adjust for the inventory amassed at stockyards and with dealers.