Tata Motors expects FY06 sales to fall

Tata Motors Ltd expects to close the current fiscal with a 27 per cent rise in sales at 1,78,000 passenger vehicles. The company will be raising raise prices by 3-4 per cent from April 1.

"Till February, Tata Motors sold close to 1,59,000 passenger vehicles in the domestic market, thus clocking a 27 per cent growth against the industry rate of 17 per cent," explained Rajiv Dube, vice-president-commercial.

Tata Motors, however, expects sales growth to fall in 2005-06 as the industry is slated to grow at less than 17 per cent. Dube said the rate of growth was expected to fall owing to uncertainties such as price rise, pollution norms, value-added tax and oil price hike.

The company has also lined up variants of its five models. "Tata would be launching variants in each of the five segments that it operates in the course of the next couple of years that will boost sales and provide growth," Dube added.

In 2008, Tata Motors would be launching new generation cars and utility vehicles to fuel growth.

For the first 11 months of the current fiscal, Dube said TML sold around 95,000 Indicas, 34,000 Indigos, and 30,000 Sumos and Safaris.

About rising prices in the automobile segment, Dube said, "With growth in the segment expected to decline in 2005-06, the actual decision to raise prices would be propelled by demand. There could be a scenario where manufactures would increase their discount to offset the price rise."