Are Maruti, Tata Motors and M&M good bets post their Q3 earnings?

Most analysts expect slowdown in the auto industry to continue due to lack of pick-up in rural demand on account of liquidity crisis in NBFC and higher monsoon deficit in select regions.

December quarter earnings and January sales figures paint a grim picture for most auto companies in India. While Tata Motors scripted history by reporting biggest-ever quarterly loss of India Inc at around Rs 27,000 crore, Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) posted decline in its net profit for the second straight quarter. Mahindra & Mahindra, too, delivered a muted performance during the period.

As regards sales, the overall volume for the auto industry declined 5 per cent year-on-year YoY (+25 per cent month-on-month basis) to 20,19,331 units in January 2019 due to lower demand across segment and inventory destocking by few players,