Luxury car sales in India are now facing a slowdown in sales for the first time in five years.
The Economic Times reports that the current downturn took its toll on the luxury market in October with sales turning negative.
Top luxury marques like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and Audi are already feeling the pinch of the credit squeeze as customers postpone fresh purchases.
Sales of high-end cars fell 30.51% in October to 2,859 units, compared to 4,114 units last October according to data compiled by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).
November has not seen sales improve and companies are preparing to take a hit on their sales as the slowdown speeds into the luxury car market.
Porsche Cars India MD Rod Wallace told ET: “The market is getting tougher for us too. While sales were buoyant till September, of late we are also feeling the pinch of tight liquidity conditions in the market as customers are facing difficulty in sourcing credit. Sales were slower in October and could remain the same in the last quarter too. We have tied up with Reliance Capital to meet our customers finance needs and boost sales.”
BMW India President Peter Kronschnabl said: “There has been a slowdown in growth in the past two months. We may not be able to sustain the kind of growth we had in the first nine months for the rest of the year. The credit crisis has now extended to the luxury segment and customers are postponing their purchases to next year. We are hoping next year will be better.”
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