In December, the domestic passenger car sales grew by more than eight per cent year-on-year (YoY) to 1,46,864 units compared with 1,35,531 units in December 2019.

The utility vehicle sales also grew by around 20 per cent YoY to 94,787 units during the month as against 79,153 units in corresponding month previous year, the latest report shared by Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) said on Thursday.

This has led to the overall growth of around 14 per cent in the passenger vehicle segment to 2,52,998 units during the month as compared with 2,22,728 units in December 2019.

In the two-wheeler segment, the sales grew by a little more than seven per cent YoY to 11,27,917 units in December as compared with 10,50,038 units in December 2019.

The motorcycle sales grew by around seven per cent to 7,44,237 units during the month as compared with 6,97,819 units in the corresponding month previous year.

Similarly, scooter sales grew by around six per cent YoY to 3,23,696 units compared with 3,06,550 units in December 2019.

“Indian automobile industry appreciates the government’s efforts to balance the safety of people and the revival of the economy from the negative effects of the pandemic. Initiatives such as the announcement of PLI scheme, keeping interest rates very low, targeted spending in rural areas and continued focus on building road infrastructure, will help in our recovery process," Kenichi Ayukawa, President, SIAM said.

He also said that the market situation is dynamic and uncertain. The industry is facing a shortage of semiconductors, steel and shipping containers.

"There is also an impact of the price increase of steel, logistics and other raw materials. The industry is working hard to get back to better volumes and better business health while ensuring the safety and well-being of people across the whole value chain," he added.

Car wholesales

Meanwhile, SIAM also reported wholesale numbers of the last nine months (April-December), in which it had reported a decline of 16 per cent in total passenger vehicle sales to 1,777,874 units as compared to 2,117,920 units in corresponding period previous year.

Hit by the lockdown and no sales for more than a month during the pandemic, the passenger car wholesales declined by more than 20 per cent YoY to 1,028,101 units during April-December 2020, as compared with 1,291,234 units in same period in 2019.

Two-wheeler sales also had declined by around 23 per cent YoY during the period to 1,07,65,788 units during the period, as compared with 1,39,13,795 units in corresponding period previous year.

The commercial sales were also hit the most and declined by more than 37 per cent YoY during the April-December period to 3,58,203 units as compared with 5,70,694 units in the same period 2019.

"If we look at the cumulative numbers of the nine-month period from April to December 2020, it shows that sales of all segments are still behind by many years. Passenger vehicle sales are behind by nearly a decade, while two-wheeler sales are behind by seven years,” Ayukawa added.

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