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The domestic car market, which has been hit by slowdown in previous quarters, is optimistic of revival before the onset of festive season.
“The sector has been down for sometime and even during January-April 2014, the automobile segment had seen a drop. However, we estimate that the car market would pick up before the festive season,” Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) general manager (sales operations) Rajiv Sharma said.
He said the market players were optimistic about monsoon and prospects of a stable government formation at the Centre for possible turnaround in the domestic economy. Further, he noted the auto sector had largely been affected by general slowdown, exchange rate fluctuations and high interest rates.
Sharma said the slowdown in car segment was evenly distributed between the metros and the countryside markets.
Replying to a Business Standard query, he said the growing pre-owned car segment in India was starting to give competition to the new car space.
“During 2013, the old car market for the first time grew bigger than the new car space in India and in a way imitated the developed economies, where old car market is almost five times the size of new car market,” he informed.
Sharma was in town to launch new Etios Cross in Uttar Pradesh.
The new model expands the Etios line with its existing models viz. Etios and Liva. It comes in three engine options. The price tags ranges from Rs 5.83 lakh to Rs 7.48 lakh (ex-showroom price Lucknow).
