Passenger vehicle sales in India up 18% in February, shows SIAM data

Passenger vehicle sales in India increased 17.92 per cent to 2,81,380 units in February as compared with same month last year, auto industry body SIAM said on Wednesday.

Passenger vehicle wholesales in February last year stood at 2,38,622 units.

As per the latest data by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), two-wheeler dispatches to dealers also rose 10.2 per cent to 14,26,865 units, compared to 12,94,787 units in February 2020.

Motorcycle sales during the last month increased 11.47 per cent to 9,10,323 units as against 8,16,679 in February 2020.

Scooter sales were also up 10.9 per cent at 4,64,744 units from 4,22,168 units a year ago.

Three-wheeler sales, however, declined by 33.82 per cent to 27,331 units as compared with 41,300 units in February last year.

Vehicle sales across categories rose by 10.21 per cent to 17,35,584 units last month as against 15,74,764 units in the year-ago period.

Commenting on the sales data, SIAM Director General Rajesh Menon said total sales of passenger vehicles from April-February period was still below 2015-16 levels and for two-wheelers it is below 2014-15 levels.

"Supply chain challenges including rising price of steel, unavailability of semiconductors and higher container charges, continue to be obstacles in smooth functioning of the industry," he noted.

In February, the country's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) reported sales of 1,44,761 units, up 8.27 per cent from the same month last year. Rival Hyundai Motor India on the other hand reported an increase of 28.97 per in its dispatches at 51,600 units last month.