New launches save the day for auto makers in Q1

A number of passenger vehicle players showed an impressive growth in the quarter ended June 30 with a rise of 8% as against 4% growth seen last year

Launches, upgrades, discounts and improving consumer sentiment helped the passenger vehicle and two-wheeler industry to tide over the slowdown and close the first quarter of 2015-16 in positive territory.

A number of passenger vehicle players showed impressive growth in the quarter ended June 30 with an increase of eight per cent against four per cent growth seen last year.

Maruti Suzuki, India’s biggest car maker, closed the quarter with a growth rate of 13 per cent, better than the 11 per cent growth it reported last year. The growth came on the back of success with new models like Celerio, Ciaz and Eeco. Maruti sold close to 50,000 Ciaz cars in the domestic market.

Tata Motors and Volkswagen with growth rates of 29 per cent and 34 per cent, respectively, were the star performers, albeit on a low base. Tata Motors’ sales grew due to the launch of the facelifted Nano while Volkswagen launched a new version of the Vento sedan.

“There is growing trust and confidence in our brand and dealer network. Our growth also comes from a lower base,” Michael Mayer, director, Volkswagen Passenger Cars India, told Business Standard in an interview last month.

Hyundai, the country’s second biggest car maker, reported a fall in growth at seven per cent against 11 per cent last year. The fall was due to the withdrawal of Santro. The two Japanese car makers, Honda and Toyota, reported growth of nine per cent each. While for Honda the top-selling City remained its biggest draw, for Toyota facelifts of the Corolla and Etios helped bring in volumes.

  “The launch of new models is driving volumes for companies like Tata Motors and Maruti. For Honda, the City continues to perform strongly while the Ciaz is adding volumes for Maruti. The demand is coming from urban areas even as the rural market has slowed down. New launches like the Creta (Hyundai), the SCross (Maruti) and the Jazz (Hyundai) will create traction in demand,” said Amit Kaushik, associate director at IHS Automotive.

Industry executives expect passenger vehicle sales will grow eight per cent to 10 per cent in the current financial year. Most anticipate a pick-up in overall demand around the festive season in October, as concerns related to the monsoon would have settled down by then.

The two-wheeler segment, however, remained sluggish in April and May because of the slump in demand from rural areas. Hero MotoCorp, which controls 40 per cent of domestic two-wheeler sales, derives at least half its sales from rural areas. Despite launching refurbished products, Hero closed the quarter lower by three per cent from the same quarter last year.

Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India remained the fastest growing two-wheeler company in the high volume category. Bajaj Auto managed to claw back on some lost ground with the CT100.

The new model pushed Bajaj’s share in the entry-level segment to 40 per cent from 24 per cent. The slowdown has had little effect on the Royal Enfield, whose models continue to be on waiting lists extending up to six months.

Scooters remained outliers for the industry led by Honda, which controls more than half the domestic scooter market. Continued demand for scooters made Yamaha and Honda launch new models and facelifts during the quarter.

With over 80 per cent of volumes coming from the urban market, scooters remained unaffected by the slump. Industry watchers are pinning their hopes on the monsoon for revival in demand. “Rural consumption is expected to rise in the second half of the year and in the run-up to the festive season we hope demand will be better than the first half,” a senior executive from utility and tractor manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra said.