New Delhi : Car sales surged 21.8 % in October, registering a 12th consecutive month of growth, as robust festive season purchases brought much needed cheer to the auto industry, reports PTI.
According to the data released by Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), domestic car sales in October stood at 1,94,158 units as compared to 1,59,408 units in the same month of 2014.
“Festival season has brought in cheer to the auto industry as sales have risen across categories during the last month,” SIAM Director General Vishnu Mathur told reporters here. Various segments, including passenger cars, motorcycles, scooters and commercial vehicles posted good growth during the month, he added.
While passenger vehicle sales picked up in the wake of new product launches by manufacturers, the overall automobile sales picked up as companies sold more to dealers for stocking up during the ongoing season of festivals that typically sees a surge in demand.
During the month, market leader Maruti Suzuki India posted a growth of 21.54 % in its domestic car sales at 97,951 units as against 80,589 units in the same month last year.
Passenger vehicles sales of the company grew by 24.72 % at 1,21,063 units with new products like Ertiga and S-Cross also contributing good numbers. Rival Hyundai Motor India saw its car sales increase by 4.78 % to 39,709 units as against 37,894 units in the year-ago month. Its passenger vehicles sales, however, jumped 23.69 % to 47,015 units driven by newly launched SUV Creta.
Homegrown Tata Motors’ domestic car sales rose 15.16% at 11,049 units.
Utility vehicles major Mahindra & Mahindra saw its sales rise 19.10 % to 22,664 units.
SIAM said the worst was over for India’s domestic sales of light commercial vehicles, and that the segment should continue to see a rise hereon. During Apr-Oct, sales of light commercial vehicles fell 5.2% on year, industry data showed. Motorcycle sales rose 5.66% to 10,65,856 units in October.
Sales of passenger cars and passenger vehicles are seen growing 6-8% in the current financial year, said Sugato Sen, deputy director general of the SIAM.
