India passenger vehicle sales down 6 percent in April-December 2013

January 9, 2014: Official sales figures for India’s auto sector are out with SIAM announcing that during the April-December 2013 period, sales grew marginally by 2.32 percent over the same period last year. The growth was largely due to growth in two-wheelers.

Sales of passenger vehicles fell 5.72 percent over the same period last year. Within the passenger vehicles segment, cars, UVs and vans fell by 4.92 percent, 4.39 percent and 15.06 percent respectively during April-December 2013 compared to the same period last year.

The overall commercial vehicles segment continued to decline with the sector as a whole recording a fall of 18.38 percent in April-December 2013 as compared to the same period last year. Medium & Heavy Commercial Vehicles (M&HCVs) fell 27 percent and light commercial vehicles which earlier in the year had recorded positive growth also dropped by 13.90 percent.

Three-wheeler sales fell by 9.31 percent in the nine-month April-December 2013 period over the same period in 2012. Both passenger carriers and goods carriers were down by 10.38 percent and 4.37 percent respectively in April-December 2013 over April-December 2012.

The only bright star in the automotive firmament was the two- wheeler segment which grew 5.40 percent during April-December 2013 over April-December 2012. Scooters and motorcycles grew at 19.89 percent and 2.48 percent respectively while moped sales fell 10.64 percent in April-December 2013 over April-December 2012.

On the export front, April-December 2013 period saw exports grow by 6.08 percent. Passenger vehicles, three-wheelers and two-wheelers recorded growth at 8.49 percent 16.13 percent and 4.65 percent respectively. CV exports fell by 12.59 percent for April-December 2013 compared to the same period last year.