Mahindra sales fall 15 pc to 40,142 units in July

Homegrown auto major Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) on Thursday reported a 15 per cent fall in total sales to 40,142 units in July.

The company had sold 47,199 units in the corresponding month last year, M&M said in a statement.

In the domestic market, sales were down 16 per cent to 37,474 units last month, compared with 44,605 units in July 2018.

Exports increased 3 per cent to 2,668 units, against 2,594 units in the year-ago month.

In the passenger vehicle segment, which includes utility vehicles, cars and vans, it sold 16,831 vehicles last month as compared with 19,781 vehicles in the same month of 2018, a dip of 15 per cent.

In the commercial vehicle segment, the company sold 15,969 vehicles as against 19,284 units a year ago, a dip of 17 per cent.

"The headwinds faced by the automotive industry continue as a result of subdued consumer sentiment, triggered by various factors," M&M Chief of Sales and Marketing, Automotive Division Veejay Ram Nakra said.

The industry needs stimuli to help revive consumer demand and conversions, he added.

"We hope that the overall buying sentiment will improve in the run-up to the festive season and with the monsoon turning out to be better than initially anticipated," Nakra said.