Passenger vehicle sales to grow by 5-10 percent: SIAM

Industry body Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) Friday said that it expects domestic car sales to register 5-10 percent growth this fiscal, on the back of healthy sales in July.

"In the first quarter of this fiscal we have grown by 2.89 percent. If the trend continues we hope that we could end the year with a growth of anything between 5 and 10 percent,"Vishnu Mathur, director general, SIAM told reporters here.

Despite high fuel and interest costs the domestic passenger cars sales grew by 5.04 percent in July, the industry body said.

Data furnished by SIAM showed that 137,873 units were sold in the month under review as against of 131,257 units in the corresponding month of last year.

Total passenger vehicle sales which includes cars, utility vehicles and vans in the month under review went up by 6.52 percent at 199,435 units from an off-take of 187,234 units in July 2013.

For last month, SIAM reported a 13.64 percent decline in sales of commercial vehicles which is a key indicator of economic activity.

Sales stood at 47,765 units from 55,310 units in the corresponding month of last year.

Three-wheeler sales slumped by by 2.17 units at 33,602 units from 34,348 units sold in the corresponding month of last year.

However, total two-wheeler sales in the month under review grew by 23.79 percent at 51,461 units from 41,572 units sold in the corresponding month of 2013.

Total scooter sales in the period under review grew by 37.10 percent at 372,136 units from 271,438 units sold in the like period of last year.

Total motorcycle sales increased by 6.17 percent at 859,290 units from an off-take of 809,386 units in July last year.

Total exports for the month went up by 31.67 percent at 322,527 units from 244,942 units being shipped out.

Total vehicle sales in July grew by 12 percent at 1,586,123 units from 1,416,182 units sold in the corresponding month of last year.