Auto Market Blazes On

The partial rollback of excise duty cut notwithstanding, auto sales in March 2010 maintained a healthy double-digit growth thanks to a variety of factors, viz. deepening economic recovery, low base effect, new launches & variants particularly in two-wheeler and passenger car segments, aggressive dealer push and discount offers plus the attraction of higher depreciation benefits. Impending rise in prices due to the implementation of new emission norms effective from April 1, 2010 was the other reason for the robust growth during the month.

With buoyancy sweeping all segments, total automobile sales in domestic market in 2009-10, including passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, 3-wheelers and two-wheelers zoomed by 37% to 12,26,944 units from 8,94,079 units in 2008-09.

The ongoing economic recovery saw commercial vehicle sales moving up steeply on the growth curve. Aided also, among other things, by last year's low base, the CV sales in the domestic market soared by 61% to 67,362 units in March 2010 over 41,797 units in March 2009.

Passenger vehicles held steady, witnessing a 20.6% growth in domestic market with sales volume of 1,99,109 units in March 2010 compared with 1,65,158 units a year ago. Passenger vehicle exports at 40,281 units during the month too stayed on a high growth trajectory notching up a 19.2% growth y-o-y.

Amidst new launches and higher sales in rural India, the two-wheeler segment recorded a quantum jump of 40.6% in total sales (domestic + export) that aggregated 10,17,528 units during the month. Domestic sales grew by 40.7% to 9,20,133 units and exports by 40% at 97,395 units.

Two-wheelers and passenger vehicles ended the year with a flourish crossing milestones of 10-million mark and 2-million mark of sales, respectively, on their way.

Like other segments, 3-wheelers sustained a scorching pace in March 2010 with a growth of 39% in total sales at 56,851 units. While domestic sales rose by 21.8% to 40,340 units, the exports at 16,511 units were up by whopping 114% y-o-y.

Car market leader Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) sold a total of 10,18,365 units in 2009-10, thereby becoming the first Indian automobile company to sell over a million units in a financial year. This included 8,70,790 units sold in the domestic market and 1,47,575 units of exports.

During March 2010, Maruti Suzuki sold total of 95,123 units, growing by 11 % over the sales figure of 85,669 units in March 2009. The company's total sales volume comprised domestic sales of 79,530 units and the highest ever-monthly exports of 15,593 units. The previous highest monthly exports were in August 2009 at 14,847 units. The growth in domestic sales worked out to 7.7%, while exports grew by a healthy 32% y-o-y during the month.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) posted record domestic sales of 31,501 units (which is the highest since HMIL started operations in 1998) during the month of March 2010, increasing by 27% from 24,754 units in March 2009. HMIL's total sales for March 2010 stood at 55,035 units as against 46,159 units in March 2009, a 19% increase. Exports grew from 21,405 units in March 2009 to 23,534 units in March 2010 reflecting a 9.9% growth. The segment-wise cumulative sales of HMIL for the month of March 2010 were as follows: A2 Segment (Santro, i10, Getz & i20) - 50,715 units; A3 Segment (Accent & Verna) - 4,276 units; and A5 Segment (Sonata Transform) - 44 units.

 
Piggybacking its small car portfolio comprising of Beat and Spark, General Motors India clocked a record growth of 127.2% in sales in March 2010 over 4,973 units in March 2009. GMI’s domestic sales tally of 11,297 units in March 2010 was an all-time high in monthly sales for the company ever since the commencement of its operations in India. The March 2010 sales comprised of 4,508 units of Chevrolet Beat, 3,266 units of Chevrolet Spark, 1,654 units of Chevrolet Tavera, 715 units of Chevrolet Cruze, 454 units of Chevrolet Aveo U-VA, 419 units of Chevrolet Aveo, 179 units of Chevrolet Captiva and 135 units of Chevrolet Optra.

Tata Motors' total sales (including exports) of commercial and passenger vehicles in March 2010 added up to 75,151 units, a growth of 38% over 54,452 units sold in March 2009. The company's domestic sales of commercial and passenger vehicles for March 2010 were 71,046 units, up 35% over the sales figure of 52,653 units a year ago. Cumulative sales (including exports) of the company for the fiscal at 6,42,686 units were the highest ever with a growth of 29% over 4,98,547 units sold in FY'09.

Tata Commercial Vehicles sales in March 2010 in the domestic market at 43,285 units climbed up by 49% y-o-y. M&HCV sales at 20,847 units and LCV sales of 22,438 units, rose by 69% and 35%, respectively, y-o-y. The LCV sales, led by the Ace family, were the highest ever.

Domestic sales of Tata Passenger Vehicles at 27,761 units during March 2010 were the highest ever in any month, clocking a 17% increase y-o-y. Sales of the Tata Nano were 4,710 units. The Indica range sales figure of 11,618 units was the highest in any month during the financial year 2009-10. The Indigo range recorded sales of 7,537 units, the highest ever in any month registering a growth of 66% over March 2009. The Sumo/Safari range accounted for sales of 3,896 units, lower by 23% compared to March 2009, hampered by the tight vendor supplies of components.

Exports of Tata Motors at 4,105 units in March 2010 registered a growth of 128% over 1,799 units in March 2009.

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd (M&M) reported an increase of 19.4% in domestic sales of all vehicles in its portfolio, including UVs, 3-wheelers and LCVs during the month. Mahindra's UV sales in the domestic market at 14,247 units were flat compared to March 2009. However, M&M CV and 3-Wheeler sales at 10,974 units and 4,372 units in domestic market grew by 71 % and 8%, respectively, over the same month in 2009.

Ashok Leyland Ltd (ALL) closed the year ended 31st March 2010 on a happy note with an annual sales volume of 63,926 units (54,431 units), up 17.4%.

During March 2010, Ashok Leyland's sales totalled 10,067 units (5,099 units), soaring by a handsome 97.4%. Domestic sales at 9,299 units (4,428 units) reflected an increase of 110%, while exports also posted a growth of 14% at 768 units (671 units).

Hero Honda Motors Ltd (HHML), the world's largest two-wheeler manufacturer, continued its excellent run with a growth of 16.8% in its domestic sales at 4,05,240 units during March 2010 as against 3,47,068 units in March 2009. The company's exports volume of 9,398 units in March 2010 also witnessed an impressive growth of 49.8% y-o-y.

Bajaj Auto Ltd, the second largest two-wheeler player in India, stayed on a high-growth trajectory during March 2010, clocking a staggering 108.6% growth in its two-wheeler domestic sales at 1,94,825 units. Bajaj two-wheeler exports at 50,064 units also grew by a healthy 27.5% y-o-y.

Bajaj 3-wheeler domestic sales volume of 14,274 units (13,842 units) during the month was up 3.1 %, while 3-wheeler exports comprising 15,070 units (7,611 units) surged by 98% y-o-y.

Closing the year on a high note, TVS Motor Company posted a 19.9% growth in its two-wheeler domestic sales at 1,26,669 units in March 2010. Significant contributions across all segments resulted in TVS total two-wheeler sales add up to 1,46,736 units (including exports of 20,067 units) in March 2010 - a growth of 20.3% over 1,21,988 units a year ago.

TVS exports of two-wheelers maintained their upward course witnessing a growth of 22.8% during March 2010 with sales of 20,067 units against 16,340 units in March 2009.

Continuing its march forward to catch up with TVS Motor as the 3rd largest two-wheeler player in India, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) clocked a growth of 81% in its domestic sales at 1,36,878 units in March 2010 against 75,600 units in March 2009. The company's exports were also on course with a growth of 21.9% at 7,551 units.

Buoyed by positive consumer confidence and performance in premium bike segment, India Yamaha Motor sold 27,460 units in March 2010 as against 15,728 units in March 2009, clocking a growth of 75%. The domestic sales of India Yamaha in March 2010 accounted for 17,892 units (14,575 units), which translates into a growth of 22.8%.

As the economic recovery gains traction and the uncertainty in job market ebbs off, auto market is buoyant about sustaining a 12-15% growth in the current financial year. However, continuing high level of inflation can be a party pooper. RBI has already upped the CRR, Repo Rate and Reverse Repo Rate by 25 basis points, which may put a pressure on interest rates.