Even though heat waves affected consumers’ selections to buy, automakers Mahindra & Mahindra, the Indian branches of Toyota Motor Corp., and Kia Motor reported increased automobile sales in June. This increase was driven by the demand for sports utility vehicles (SUVs).
Indian automakers provide dealers with wholesale data, or vehicle sales, once a month. In India, the sales figures are regarded as a crucial measure of private consumption.
The auto industry makes up about 7% of the national economy. Mahindra’s total car sales climbed by 11.2%, missing brokerage Nomura’s 16% prediction and Jefferies’ 18% estimate, according to monthly statistics from automakers provided on Monday. Mahindra’s monthly sales growth has not increased this slowly since March.
Nomura said that the extreme heat in northern India has decreased customer traffic at dealerships and that a typical monsoon will probably result in a resurgence in rural passenger car sales. The growths of 40.1% and 9.8% for Toyota and Kia, respectively, are the highest since February.
For Toyota and Kia, Nomura and Jefferies do not offer monthly sales projections. Companies like Mahindra and Toyota, whose product lines are virtually exclusively comprised of utility vehicles, have benefited from a spike in domestic sales of more costly SUVs that occurred last year and has continued into 2024.
Later in the day, Maruti Suzuki, the market leader in the less expensive small-car segment, will release its June sales figures. Meanwhile, motorcycle manufacturer Bajaj Auto recorded a 5.1% increase in two-wheeler sales as a result of a resurgence in domestic demand in rural areas that outpaced sluggish exports. Although this exceeded Nomura’s prediction of a 1% fall, Jefferies’ prediction of 10% increase was not met.
Sales of rural two-wheelers have rebounded from a period of weakness that affected entry-level motorbikes like the Bajaj Platina through the fiscal year 2024. A 2023 estimate by motorcycle manufacturer Hero Motorcorp states that over half of India’s two-wheeler sales are in the rural areas.
June Y/Y change name sales total for the company (units) (%) Mahindra & Toyota 27,474 40.1 Kirloskar Motor 69,397 11.2 Mahindra 21,300 9.8 Kia Motor, 358,477 5.1 Mahindra, and 47,319 6.4 Mahindra Farm Equipment are among the brands.