On a Fast Track

The month of May saw auto sales zooming and creating records of sorts with all segments notching up healthy numbers. The industry set out on a fast track, registering a growth of 22.25% over May 2005.

Maruti Udyog Limited’s domestic sales in May 2006 at 50,904 units as against 40,006 units in May 2005 grew by a robust 27.24%.

The total sales of Maruti stood at 53,396 units (including 2,492 units of exports) during the month, moving the graph up by 26.27% from 42,286 units (including 2,280 units of exports) of sales in May 2005.

Maruti's volume in the domestic compact car segment (Alto, WagonR, Zen, Swift) grew by 38.56% and in mid-size sedan (Baleno, Esteem) by 9.93%. The sales of the flagship model Maruti 800 too improved by 10.25%, clocking 6,743 units in May 2006 as against 6,116 units in May 2005.

Hyundai Motor India sold a total of 25,883 vehicles in the month of May, comprising 16,102 units in the domestic market and 9,781 units in the overseas market. Domestic sales achieved a growth of 15% and exports, 6.2% over May 2005. Hyundai Motor India’s largest selling brand, Santro sold 12,475 units in the domestic market growing by 33% over corresponding month in the previous year.

Segment-wise cumulative sales in May 2006 were: 22,000 units in A2 segment, 3,540 units in A3 segment, 264 units in A4 segment, 39 units in A5 segments and 40 units in the SUV segment.

General Motors India witnessed sales of 3,478 units of passenger cars during May 2006 comprising 1,625 units of Chevrolet Tavera, 403 units of Chevrolet Optra and 1,450 units of Chevrolet Aveo. This marks a 39% growth for GM India over May 2005 sales of 2,503 units.

The Chevrolet Aveo has consistently been recording increasing sales ever since it was launched in March this year and is fast emerging as a serious competitor in its segment in terms of styling, performance, value for money proposition and other product attributes. Along with the Aveo, the Optra and the Tavera are also recording sales in line with the expectations.

The Chevrolet Aveo is the first of three new Chevrolet products debuting in the first six months of 2006. It will be joined by the Chevrolet Aveo U-VA and Chevrolet SRV in the coming months of this fiscal.

Honda Siel Cars India Ltd’sdomestic sales for the month of May at 4,152 units clocked a growth of 18.4% over May 2005 sales of 3,507 units.

Honda City ZX - the flagship model from HSCI, registered sales of 3,724 units. Honda Accord sold 263 units and the CR-V, 165 units in May 2006.

 
Mahindra & Mahindra’s vehicle sales rose 14% in May to 12,117 units from 10,587 units a year earlier.

The company’s domestic sales, including utility vehicles, light commercial vehicles and three-wheelers, increased by 14% to 11,629 units from 10,242 units y-o-y. Exports rose 41 % to 486 units from 345 units.

Tata Motors’ sales (including exports) in May 2006 shot up to 44,357 units, witnessing a leap of 45% over 30,593 units sold in May last year.

The passenger vehicle business reported a total sale of 18,115 vehicles in the domestic market in May 2006, reflecting a growth of 29% y-o-y. The Indica sold 12,409 units, clocking a growth of 46.3% over May 2005. The Indigo family registered sales of 2,844 units, a decline of 6.2% vis-a-vis May 2005. The Sumo and Safari accounted for sales of 2,862 units, recording a growth of 15% over May 2005.

The company’s sales of commercial vehicles in May 2006 in the domestic market aggregated 21,903 units, up 64% over 13,338 vehicles sold in the same period last year. M&HCV sales stood at 12,682 units, growing by hefty 55%, while LCV sales notched up 9,221 units, a growth of 79% over May 2005.

The growth in May 2006 is on a low base of May 2005, which was due to unanticipated difficulties in certification and procurement of some critical parts as a result of the introduction of new, stringent emission standards from April 2005.

Tata Motors’ exports at 4,339 units of vehicles in May 2006 increased 33% from 3,251 units exported in May 2005.

The vehicle sales of Ashok Leyland, India’s second-biggest bus and truck maker, in May rose by 21% to 5,631 units from 4,655 a year earlier. Sales in India saw a growth of 23% to 5,322 units (4,332 units), while exports fell to 309 units from 323 units.

Eicher Motors also witnessed an impressive growth of 32.64% with sale of 1,902 commercial vehicle units (132 units of exports) in May 2006 over 1,613 units (123 units of exports) in May 2005.

Hero Honda's sales grew at a scorching pace in May 2006. The company sold an incredible 303,666 units during the month, establishing new sales benchmarks for the industry.

With the new sales record, the company has broken its own record established during the last festive season. The company had sold 302,000 units in October 2005. The highest-ever sales recorded during May - a non-festival month, is a remarkable achievement.

The volume sales recorded in May 2006 also marks an impressive volume growth of 34.32% over May 2005 that had witnessed sales of 226,072 motorcycles.

Bajaj Auto too continued with its splendid run, recording a growth of 25%. The company sold 223,455 units during May 2006 as against the sales figure of 178,645 units in May 2005.

Bajaj Auto sold 196,120 motorcycles in May 2006, posting a 27% jump over 153,975 units in May 2005. Total two-wheeler sales, including scooters, of Bajaj Auto grew 23% to 199,426 units as against 162,753 units in May 2005.

The company’s overseas sales more than doubled to 32,179 units from 15,540 units a year earlier.

The motorcycle sales of TVS Motor Company at 78,271 units in May 2006 soared by 23%, compared to 63,585 units of motorcycles sold in May 2005. Significant growth in motorcycle segment also contributed to boosting the overall two-wheeler sales of the company by 17% to 124,678 units compared to 106,914 units during May 2005.

This is the third consecutive month in calendar 2006 that TVS has recorded more than 30% growth in motorcycle sales.

TVS StaR continues to be the star performer for the company having crossed the 700,000 sales mark since its launch.

Riding high on the style and design quotient, TVS Apache has met with wide acceptance amongst youth and upwardly mobile professionals. With a view to meet increase in demand, the company continues to ramp up its production.

While TVS Scooty continued to be the market leader in the sub-100cc scooter segment, its growth was flat with sales volume of 20,396 units in May 2006 compared to 20,454 units last year during the same period.

On the export front, TVS Motor Company exported 8,552 units, it’s highest ever, in May 2006 posting a growth of 36% over May 2005 exports.

Auto industry is steaming ahead in top gear. The first 2 months of the fiscal have witnessed a robust growth. As the economy continues to perform well and grow over 8% with CSO estimating GDP growth of 8.4% for the year 2005-06, emerging automotive scenario in the short-term and medium term paints a bright picture and promises an exciting time ahead.