Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The markets in the city are all set to welcome customers today on Dhanteras. Sellers of automobiles, jewellery, electronic gadgets and utensils are especially hopeful of brisk business on the day. All over the state, customers have booked around 2,500 two-wheelers and 800 cars for purchase on the auspicious day, whereas city jewellers estimate that their sales would touch Rs 25 crores.
Chairperson, Federation of Automobile Dealers' Association (FADA), MP, Ashish Pande has told Free Press that they expect the sales of two-and four-wheelers to jump by around 15-20% in this festive season, as compared with the corresponding period last year. The festive season begins from the first day of Navratri and ends on Diwali.
Pande says that the sales of two-wheelers would have been much higher but for production and supply issues being faced by automobile majors Honda, Yamaha and TVS. He says that last year, there were supply issues vis-a-vis four-wheelers owing to short supply of microchips.
Honda Activa is the most in demand among two-wheelers with IC (internal combustion) engines whereas Ola scooter is leading in the e-segment. As for four-wheelers, SUVs (Sports Utility Vehicles) have emerged as the favourite with those manufactured by Tata and Maruti witnessing great demand, Pande adds.
The jewellers are also hoping for a bonanza. Secretary of the Bhopal Sarafa Association, Akhilesh Mittal says that this year, the range of gold coins starts from 100 mg, instead of one gm. “The price of gold (per 10 gm) is expected to grow from around Rs 62,000 to Rs 70,000 and of silver (per kg) from Rs 72,000 to Rs 80,000 by the year end,” he said, making them attractive as an investment.
“We expect total sales of around Rs 25 crore in the city this Dhanteras,” said Mittal, adding that the wedding season, which begins from Devuthani Gyaras, is also expected to fuel demand for jewellery.
Owner of Darwesh Bartan Bhandar, New Market, and Ashok Tejwani says that the market is good. They have an exchange offer on old pressure cookers and utensils and most people have booked the items. He, however, said that like many other sectors, utensils, too, have been hit by online business. Curbs on carrying cash due to the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) may also affect the market, Tejwani adds.
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