Automobile sales continued to peak in the month of November with most passenger vehicle manufacturers registering double digit growth. Similar trend was witnessed in the two-wheelers, three-wheelers, and commercial vehicles with slight variations. The growth is also result of a low base in November last year when the industry was facing negative head winds in the form of component shortages and threat of new Covid 19 variant – Omicron. Most of the manufacturers were able to maintain the growth momentum of the festive months in November.
Passenger Vehicles
Among passenger vehicles, Maruti Suzuki India sold a total of 1,59,044 units in November 2022 against 139,184 sold in the same month last year, registering growth of 14.26 per cent. Total sales in the month include domestic sales of 135,055 units against 113,017 units sold in November 2021. Sales to other OEM was 4,251 units against 4,774 units in the last year period. Exports also showed degrowth with 19,738 units in November this year against 21,393 units sold last year. The shortage of electronic components had a minor impact on the production of vehicles, mainly domestic models.
Commenting on it, Mr Shashank Srivastava, Senior Executive Officer (Marketing & Sales), Maruti Suzuki, said, “The industry’s wholesales grew by 31 pc to 3.22 lakh units in November 2022 as against 2.45 lakh units in November last year. This was also the highest-ever PV sales during November, when compared to the previous best of 2.86 lakh in November 2020.”
Premium car manufacturer Honda Cars (HCIL) registered monthly domestic sales of 7,051 units in November 2022 with 29 per cent growth over the corresponding month last year. The company had registered 5,457 units in domestic sales and exported 1,447 units in Nov 2021. The export numbers for HCIL stood at 726 units in Nov 2022.
Commenting on it, Mr Yuichi Murata, Director, Marketing and Sales, Honda Cars India Ltd said, “Riding on the back of relatively better economic prospects, the demand for cars has continued well post the festive season and this momentum is also visible in our sales numbers. We are positive that the trend will continue, and we will be able to cater to the growing demand as India goes back to the pre pandemic mode.”
Tata Motors sales in the domestic and international market for November 2022 stood at 75,478 vehicles, compared to 62,192 units during November 2021, a growth of 21.36 per cent. The company’s total domestic sales stood at 73,467 in November this year against 58.073 units sold in the year-ago period, a growth of 27 pc. Its total PV sales stood at 46,425 last month against 29,947 sold in the same month last year, registering growth of 55 pc.
Kia India registered 24,025-unit sales in November 2022, its third-best sales performance till date, recording a growth of 69 pc on a year-on-year scale. The carmaker sold 14,214 units in the corresponding month last year. Nissan India announced cumulative wholesales of 6,746 units, inclusive of domestic wholesales of 2400 units and export wholesales of 4346 units, in November 2022. The cumulative wholesale YTD growth stood at 22 pc as compared to the same period last year.
TKM sold a total of 11,765 units in the month of November 2022 against 13,003 units sold in the month of November 2021, registering negative growth of 9.5 pc. MG Motor India sold 4079 units in November 2022.
Commercial Vehicles & 3Ws
Among commercial vehicles, Tata Motors’ growth went down by 10 per cent as the company registered sales of 29,053 units in November this year against 32,245 sold in the same month last year. However, the M&HCV sales of the company went up by 42 pc with 8,879 units sold in November 2022 as against 6,266 units sold in the same month last year. Domestic sales of MH&ICV in November 2022, including trucks and buses, stood at 11,896 units, compared to 10,213 units in November 2021. Total sales for MH&ICV Domestic and International Business in November 2022, including trucks and buses, stood at 12,673 units compared to 11,909 units in November 2021.
Commenting on CV sales, Ms Sruthi Thomas, Assistant Vice President and Sector Head – Corporate Ratings, ICRA, said, “CY22 came as a year of relief for the domestic commercial vehicle (CV) industry. Accordingly, with the various growth drivers being intact, all the subsegments reported sales increase, and these trends are expected to continue into the next year as well. M&HCV trucks are expected to grow by 15 pc – 20 pc in FY23 and 10 pc – 12pc in FY24, with growth continuing to be supported by traction in construction and mining activities, as well as the pent-up replacement demand.”
Two-Wheelers
In November, the top two-wheeler makers reported double-digit growth on the low base of last year. Though there are signs of improvement, the economic health of rural India is not yet back on track, indicated by the lower sales of motorcycles. On a sequential basis, November sales for all OEMs were in the red. In October, wholesales of two-wheelers were up in anticipation of the festive season demand.
Among two-wheelers, Hero MotoCorp sold 390,932 units in November 2022, a growth of 12 per cent over the corresponding month of the previous year (November 2021), when the company had sold 349,393 units. The company expects the momentum to build-up in the coming quarters on account of favorable economic indicators, including encouraging farm activity and positive consumer sentiments along with the upcoming marriage season.
Two-wheeler demand has remained weak over the past few years, with consumer sentiments impacted by factors such as income uncertainty during the pandemic period and a persistent hike in two-wheeler prices led by both regulatory changes and inflationary pressures. According to Mr Rohan Gupta of ICRA, “The festive season brought some respite to the sector, with retail offtake in October 2022 growing higher than in the pre-pandemic levels.”
