Auto sales reached new milestone in 42-day festive period; 37.93 lakh vehicles sold: FADA

The 42-day festive period – starting on Navratri and ending 15 days after Dhanteras – saw a new milestone in car sales, said Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) in a new report released on Tuesday. The association said that significant growth was observed in two-wheeler, three-wheeler, commercial vehicles as well as passenger vehicles categories, as compared to the previous year. However, the tractor segment saw a slight decline. The festive period saw an overall increase of 18.73 per cent in car sales.

FADA President, Manish Raj Singhania said, "During the 42-day festive period of FY2023, we reached  a new milestone with vehicle sales climbing to 37.93 lakh, a 19 per cent increase from last year's 31.95 lakh. Significant growth was observed in the two-wheeler, three-wheeler, commercial vehicles and passenger vehicles, with respective rises of 21 per cent, 41 per cent, 8 per cent, and 10 per cent. Conversely, the tractor segment experienced a  slight decline of 0.5 per cent.”

As many as 28,93,107 two-wheeler vehicles were sold in the festive period, as opposed to 23,96,665 in the same 42-day period the previous year. FADA data showed that 5,47,246 passenger vehicles were sold as against 4,96,047 previous year, while 1,42,875 three-wheelers were sold and 1,23,784 commercial vehicles were sold, amounting to 37,93,584 vehicles sold in the festive period.

Rural areas particularly contributed to the surge in the sale of two-wheelers, said Singhania. “Despite initial underperformance during Navratri, particularly in the passenger vehicle sector, the situation improved by Deepawali, ending with a 10 per cent growth rate,” he said.

“While SUVs  were the highest demanded vehicles, inventory levels for passenger vehicles remain a significant concern as OEMs continue to push further dispatch thus keeping the inventory rate at near to all time high levels,” said Singhania.

Tractors that saw a decrease of 8.3 per cent in sales during Navratri, made a remarkable recovery, ending the festive period with only a 0.5 per cent decrease. “This turnaround highlights the robust purchasing power in rural India,” said Singhania.

The increase in vehicle sales is in line with FADA’s expectation as mentioned during the September vehicle sales data ahead of the festive season.

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