With market leaders like Maruti Suzuki in passenger cars and Hero MotoCorp for two wheelers feeling the strain of slowdown, the overall data of automobile sales during August may show another month of depression.
Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers will be sharing the sales report shortly at 11 am today, and the whole picture will come into the light, but as individual companies had already shared their numbers in the beginning of the month that indicated poor sales.
For instance, Maruti Suzuki India reported a 36 per cent YoY decline in sales during August to 93,173 units (1,45,895 units).
Impacted by weak consumer sentiment and deferral of purchases, passenger vehicle sales fell during August on a year-on-year (YoY) basis. Severe floods across the states also hurt the demand, companies had said.
Hyundai Motor India also reported a double-digit YoY decline in sales (17 per cent) to 38,205 units (45,801 units in the same month last year).
Honda Cars India and Tata Motors, in particular, reported the most dismal numbers, selling less than half of the units they sold last year in August.
Two-wheeler makers including Hero MotoCorp, Honda Motorcycle and Scooters India, Bajaj Auto and TVS Motor also had reported a decline in sales during August.
According to the companies and industry leaders, the sector required an immediate decision from the government on GST reduction (from 28 per cent to 18 per cent) which may help boost sales during the festive season.
Recently, at the SIAM and ACMA conventions, the industry demanded a quick intervention from the government on reducing GST, at least for some time, to gain back the sentiments in consumers.
[“source=thehindubusinessline”]
