Luxury car sales up 38% YoY in June, more growth than overall vehicle sales

Luxury car sales have registered strong double-digit growth in the first six months of 2023, leaving behind the overall automotive industry, The Economic Times (ET) has reported.

Industry estimates say that about 20,000 luxury vehicles were sold between January and June, up 38 per cent from the 14,500 units sold in the same period last year, the report said. The strong consumer demand at the top end of the market, along with a healthy overall order book across the industry, is an indication that the momentum will sustain through the year, the newspaper quoted industry experts.

Going by the current trend, luxury car sales will cross the 40,000 mark taking over the pre-pandemic peak achieved in 2018, the ET report said.

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On the other hand, passenger vehicle sales went up by about 10 per cent to reach over two million units in the first six months of 2023.

The report added that these sales numbers are the best-ever half-yearly figures for both the luxury segment and the mass car market for the country.

Mercedes, BMW, and Audi's market outlook

According to Standard Chartered estimates, the US will enter recession in the early months of 2024 amid strong inflationary pressure, ET reported. Whereas Europe's largest economy, Germany, officially entered recession in the first quarter.

However, domestically, German carmakers like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi posted strong growth numbers during the January-June period. While sales for Mercedes-Benz went up by 13 per cent to reach 8,528 units, for Audi India, the sales almost doubled to reach 3,474 units, the report said. BMW India has not released its sales figures so far.