Auto industry chases the monsoon, but analysts are less optimistic

Manufacturers think the impact of Covid-19's ravages on rural India will abate if seasonal rains are good.

Covid-19 has ravaged rural India, sapping its once rising purchasing power, but auto companies with high dependence on the region, including Hero MotoCorp, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) and Maruti, don’t see such a bumpy road ahead. Each of these compa­nies draw over a third of their sales from the rural markets. They are banking on the forecast of a good monsoon and a bumper summer crop plus sustained government support to help rural India bounce back as soon as the pandemic recedes.

Some like two-wheeler market leader Hero MotoCorp claimed it is already seeing some green shoots as the number