Bajaj Auto sees sales grow over 20% in festive season

MUMBAI: Bajaj Auto, India's second-largest motorcycle maker, is on course to touch 2.4 million units in sales in FY17, on the back of strong double-digit sales during the festive season. New launches lined up in the coming months will enable the two-wheeler maker to sustain the sales momentum.
For the full year, growth for Bajaj Auto could exceed 25% if it manages to attain its target of 2.4 million units. The company had posted sales of 1.89 million units in FY16 registering a growth of 7%.

Healthy domestic sales helped Bajaj Auto de-risk the sluggish overseas market so far, the same was reflected in the sales for the month of October. Sales in domestic market grew 5% to 2.12 lakh units, even as exports posted a decline of 11%. The numbers announced are wholesale despatches and may not reflect the true demand in the market. The company has in fact posted a strong doubledigit growth in retail, which is likely to sustain for the rest of the year.
It has lined up the new Pulsar for 2017, a new variant of `V' motorcycle and all the new 400cc bike, which is likely to bring in incremental numbers. People close to the company say, FY17 will be a very healthy year from the domestic motorcycle business standpoint. “Thanks to festivities, the growth rate was strong during the last few months. With new product launches lined up in the coming two months, the effect of the new products will start reflecting in the last quarter of FY17, so on the whole it will be very strong year for the company ,“ said a senior Bajaj Auto executive.

There were a few aberrations during specific festivals, but on the whole starting Navratri until Diwali, Bajaj Auto saw a growth of 20% and it was nicely spread across various segments.

The sports segment grew 25% during the peak festivities of Navratri, Dussehra and Diwali, whereas the commuter segment too registered a growth of over 15% led by a decent pick-up in rural areas.