The Hindu Business Line : Four-wheeler sales growth slows in 2005

THE double-digit growth seen in four-wheeler sales hit a speed-breaker in 2005 as all the segments, including passenger cars and commercial vehicles, saw growth dip to a single digit.

According to year-end figures released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), car sales growth in India fell to 6.9 per cent in 2005 against the high 24.6 per cent in the year ending December 2004.

Many domestic carmakers, including Tata Motors, saw demand slowing down in the year, due to factors varying from the implementation of VAT to floods in Maharashtra and Gujarat to stricter emission norms (which resulted in increased prices).

Total car sales in 2005 stood at 8.58 lakh units against 8.02 lakh units in 2004.

On the commercial vehicles front, the story was no different as a slowdown in the demand for medium-and heavy commercial vehicles (M&HCV) saw overall growth declining to 9.04 per cent in 2005 from 28.3 per cent in 2004.

Motorcycles, however, kept up the momentum on the two-wheeler front, growing by 17 per cent in the year.

December buoyant: In turn, the last month of 2005 seemed to be good for many automobile companies. Maruti Udyog Ltd for instance posted a 16.4 per cent growth in domestic sales at 43,251 units for December 2005 as compared to 37,153 units in the year-ago period, a company statement said. The company's total sales however grew by 5.1 per cent in the month at 46,079 units.

Honda Siel Cars India Ltd reported a 58 per cent jump in sales during December 2005 at 4,113 units as compared to the same month a year ago. The flagship model, Honda City, managed a tally of 3,766 units in December 2005, a growth of a 71 per cent over the corresponding month in 2004, a company statement said here.

Meanwhile, General Motors said that it bucked the industry trend in 2005 and its sales have grown by 18 per cent during the year to 30,837 units as against 26,166 units a year ago.

The main growth driver of the company remained its multi-utility vehicle Chevrolet Tavera, which sold 18,622 units in the year as against 8,471 units in 2004, a growth of 121 per cent.

Motorcycle major Hero Honda reported a 6.02 per cent increase in domestic sales during December 2005 as compared to the same month a year ago. The company clocked 2,38,822 units in December 2005 as against 2,25,250 units in the same month in 2004. In calendar year 2005, however, the company's sales increased by 15.3 per cent to 29,16,523 motorcycles.