Passenger vehicle wholesale surges 14% in Jan: SIAM

The wholesales of passenger vehicles grew 14% year-on-year to 3,93,074 units in January this year as against 3,46,080 units in the same period last year buoyed by positive consumer sentiments, according to the latest data by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

Among passenger vehicles, Maruti Suzuki, the country's largest automobile manufacturer, sold 1,66,802 units in the domestic market in January, up 13.2% against 1,47,348 units in the same period last year. The company’s exports during the month under review stood at 23,694 units, as against 17,083 units in January last year.

This was followed by South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor India, whose domestic wholesales stood at 57,115 units, witnessing a growth of 13.9% as against 50,106 units in the same period last year. However, Hyundai Motor’s exports declined in January by 13.7% to 10,500 units as against 12,170 units in the same period last year amidst the red-sea crisis.

Notably, Mahindra and Mahindra, the country's largest sports utility vehicle (SUV) manufacturer, witnessed a 23.2% increase in domestic wholesales to 43,068 units against 33,040 units in the same period last year. Like its peers, the company’s exports also witnessed a decline of 44.5% to 1,474 units, as against 817 units in the same period last year.

Among automakers, the domestic wholesales of South Korean automaker Kia India, however, slumped 16.9% to 23,769 units in January this year, against 28,634 units in the same period last year. The company’s exports declined by 80.2% year-on-year to 1,305 units as against 6,608 units in the same period last year.

Meanwhile, the domestic wholesales of two-wheeler manufacturers including electric vehicles grew by 26.2% YoY to 14,95,183 units against 11,84,376 units in the same period last year owing to an increase in rural demand. The two-wheeler manufacturers' exports in January this year stood at 2,60,308 units as against 2,20,103 units in the same period last year.

The domestic three-wheeler wholesales in January increased by 9.4% to 53,537 units as against 48,903 units in the same period last year. "Passenger Vehicle sales have remained resilient led by positive consumer sentiments, while the two-wheeler Segment witnessed good growth in January as well, as the rural market continues to recover. The three-wheeler segment has also performed better. Though the Commercial Vehicle Sector did not grow in January 2024, it is likely to see good offtake in the next 2 months of this financial year. Government’s strategic focus on mobility in Budget 2024, including strengthening the electric vehicle ecosystem, especially the charging infra and public transport, should help in continuing with the overall growth momentum for the Auto Sector," says Vinod Aggarwal, president, of SIAM.