Indian passenger car sales rose 31% year on year in October but were relatively flat (+4.6%) compared with September 2004.
Go deeper with GlobalData
October marks the start of the festive season, usually a strong time for car sales. September, in contrast, is India’s slow sales month due to a 15-day period regarded by Hindus as an inauspicious time to make new purchases. Relatively flat sales growth from September to October is therefore very unusual.
This year it’s the result of unexpectedly high sales in September 2004. August sales were not very strong due to a truck strike and pent-up demand flowed over into September. With the inauspicious period of Shraddh falling in October, last month’s sales took a beating.
Car sales were 73,770 units in October, compared to 56,222 last year and 70,492 in September.
Passenger car market leader Maruti Udyog reported sales of 37,544 units, a rise of 34% over last year but down on September’s 40,322. The company is now offering discounts of up to 8% on its B-segment models.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataNovember may see further disappointment for Maruti as rival Hyundai India is offering big discounts on its Santro hatchback and reportedly took orders for 25,000 cars over three days.
Ford India sold 1,959 cars, a modest 14% rise year-on-year but a huge fall from September sales of 2,374. General Motors also reported a modest increase of 6% to 1,329 but negative growth compared to September’s 1,830.
Honda Siel sales were up 190% year on year to 2,994 but down on September’s 3,203.
Hyundai Motor India was the only car maker to buck the trend with sales up 17% compared to last October to 13,239 and up 13% compared to September’s 11,703.
Deepesh Rathore / Tilak Swarup
