December car sales in India were down 5% to leave India’s car market down 10% at just over 1.8m units.
India’s car market suffered in 2013 as the economy faltered and car prices (as well as fuel) increased.
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Local analysts expect the market to remain subdued in the first half of 2014. However, it could revive after elections in May.
Forecasters remain convinced that India has good long-term demand potential. “India has seen something of a setback on its economy with the depreciation of the rupee and some dent to confidence. Economic growth has eased lately,” said LMC Automotive analyst Pete Kelly.
“But we remain very confident about long-term prospects for the light vehicle market in India. It’s still low given the size of the population and future economic growth will raise incomes and lead to higher rates of motorisation.”
India’s light vehicle market is forecast by LMC to grow to 8.2m units by 2020, compared with around 3m units a year now.
