Two-wheeler sales rise in Nov at most manufacturers on last year's low base

Domestic two-wheeler sales rose in November at most of the manufacturers on last year’s low base. Some of the uptick is also attributable to the marriage season which usually perks up the volumes in the northern part of the country. Combined dispatches at the top 5 manufacturers rose 17 per cent year-on-year to 1.1 million units.

This is the eighth consecutive month of increase in sales in the world’s largest market for scooters and motorcycles. The recovery comes after the segment—the worst hit by the pandemic and a combination of factors including regulatory changes, slowdown in rural India and incessant price hikes-dragged down sales to a multi-year low.

In November, market leader Hero MotoCorp led the sales chart with a growth of 15.5 per cent over the corresponding period last year. It expects the momentum to build-up in the coming quarters on account of favourable economic indicators, including encouraging farm activity and positive consumer sentiments along with upcoming marriage season, it said in a statement.

Hemal Thakkar, the director of Crisil Research, said the internal combustion engine (ICE) two-wheelers have seen some slowdown in momentum post-festive. “The year-on-year growth is largely on account of the low base of last year. The rural part of the story is still catching up and would start looking better from Q1 of FY24. We expect FY23 to end at about 10 per cent growth on a Y-o-Y basis over FY22,” said Thakkar.

Like Hero, Honda Motorcycle—the second largest in the pecking order-is optimistic. Atsushi Ogata, managing director, president & CEO, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India said, “After a successful festival season, HMSI continues to witness consistent demand in the market.”

There is now a growing need for mobility in urban India as offices, institutions open-up and more and more people venture out, he said. “The industry has been witnessing steady growth momentum and we are on a constant lookout to fulfill the needs of our customers,” he said.

Companies	Nov-21	Nov-22	% change y-o-y
Hero MotoCorp	328,862	379,839	15.5
Honda Motorcycle	256,174	353,540	38
TVS Motor	175,940	191,730	9
Bajaj Auto	144,953	123,490	-15
Royal Enfield	44,830	65,760	47
Total	950,759	1,114,359	17