Passenger vehicle registrations rose 9.8% in September, the first retail sales growth since March, data from the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations show. Total vehicle deliveries, however, continued to shrink, sliding 10% to 13.44 lakh units.
Overall registrations, however, increased 11.4% from August, raising hopes of a “high growth period” in October and November due to the upcoming festivals.
PV deliveries rose to more than 1.95 lakh units last month, while two-wheelers registrations slid 12.6 to 10.16 lakh units and commercial vehicle registrations fell 33.7% to 39,600 units. Tractor deliveries surged 80.4% to 68,564 units.
“With social distancing on customers’ minds, coupled with the government’s push to further normalise business conditions and banks becoming more considerate to finance vehicles, entry level passenger vehicles saw good demand thus indicating a preference for personal transportation over public,” FADA President Vinkesh Gulati said. New model introductions and last year’s low base had also aided growth in the PV segment, he added.
Still, FADA had a caveat on the outlook.
“With the festival season round the corner and elections approaching in Bihar, the risk of COVID spread resurging may play a spoilsport in specific regions. Inventory for 2W stands at 45-50 days and PV stands at 35-40 days. Any dampener in vehicle sales during the upcoming festivals will have a catastrophic impact on dealers’ financial health,” FADA warned.
Published - October 08, 2020 11:25 pm IST
