Major auto companies report decline in wholesales in September

Major passenger vehicle (PV) manufacturers including Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL), Hyundai Motor India (HMIL) and Tata Motors have reported a decline in their wholesales (dispatches to dealers) in September on an yearly basis, owing to the Shradh period, which continues till early this month.

However, companies like Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), Kia India and Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) have reported positive numbers during the month. According to industry estimates, the total PV sales in September has declined a per cent year on year to around 3.59 lakh units compared with around 3.63 lakh units in the corresponding month last year.

However, industry veterans said that the sales are expected to improve in October, as Navaratri and Diwali fall in the same month. “Retail sales will be very high this month because Navratri and Diwali are in the same month…As for us, we are witnessing good traction in the number of bookings…we are going to see some growth in the festive season,” Partho Banerjee, Senior Executive Officer (Marketing & Sales), MSIL, told reporters.

He added that the company has a network stock of close to one month, as MSIL has been reducing the dispatches to re-calibrate the inventory at the dealer level to match with the market demand.

MSIL sold 1,44,962 units of PVs in September, a year-on-year decline of 4 per cent compared with 1,50,812 units in September 2023. Similarly, HMIL reported a decline of 6 per cent to 51,101 units (54,241 units).

Festival season

“With the festive season kicking in, we have introduced many new models and variants to meet customers aspirations, and our dealer touchpoints are fully geared up to delight customers with deliveries of their favourite Hyundai cars in this auspicious period,” Tarun Garg, Whole-time Director and Chief Operating Officer, HMIL, said.

Tata Motors also reported a decline of 8 per cent to 41,063 units (44,809 units). Other manufacturers including Honda Cars India (-42.45 per cent), JSW MG Motor India (-8 per cent), Skoda Auto (-18 per cent), Volkswagen India (-5 per cent), Renault India (-4.5 per cent) and Nissan India (-14 per cent) also reported decline in sales on yearly basis.

However, M&M (24 per cent), Kia India (17.4 per cent) and TKM (1 per cent) reported growth in their monthly wholesales.

In the two-wheeler segment, the sales continue to grow with companies like Hero MotoCorp (19 per cent), Bajaj Auto (28 per cent), TVS Motor Company (23 per cent) and Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (9 per cent) reporting growth in their sales.