Thaindian News

New Delhi, Jan 11 (IANS) Domestic automobile sales grew by 30.92 percent in 2010 (calendar year), standing at 14.82 million as against 11.32 million registered in 2009, an industry chamber said Tuesday.Releasing the robust sales growth data, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), said that the growth was due to increasing dispensable incomes, low interest rates and increase in sales base at par with the pre-recession era.

“Sales of passenger vehicles segment grew by 31.34 percent, commercial vehicles segment by 45.24 percent, three-wheelers by 22.03 percent and two-wheelers by 30.51 percent,” said SIAM.

Passenger vehicle sales grew by 31.34 percent and stood at 2.38 million, including 1.87 million passenger cars, 312,953 multi-utility vehicles (MUVs) and 202,834 multi-purpose vehicles (MPVs).

According to SIAM, other segments like two-wheelers and three-wheelers too showed impressive sales growth of 22.03 percent and 30.51 percent, respectively.

For the period of April-December in the current fiscal year, the auto-industry reported sales growth of 28.68 percent - 11.35 million units as against 8.82 million units in the corresponding period of 2009.

Meanwhile April-December sales for passenger vehicle segment grew by 31.38 percent and stood at 1.80 million as compared to 1.36 million units in the same period of 2009.

“Passenger cars grew by 32 percent (1.41 million units), while utility vehicle grew by 20.82 percent (233,350 units) and multi-purpose vehicles by 50.58 percent (156,525 units),” SIAM said.

SIAM added that the April-December period also witnessed a 28.21 percent increase in the sales of two-wheeler segment with the sales of 8.69 million units as against 6.77 million in the same period of 2009.

Earlier, the auto industry clocked 10 million passenger vehicles sales in the period between April-November as against 7.8 million in the same period of 2009.

Analysts predict the sales momentum to continue in 2011, with some expecting growth of 20-25 percent in the passenger vehicle segment alone.

“I expect a fast growth pattern in the Indian auto-sector with passenger car segment growing at 20-25 percent, two-wheeler segment growing at 12-15 percent and truck segment at 15 percent for 2011,” Amol Bhutada, automobile sector analyst for Elara Securities, told IANS.

While, the sales number may favour the auto-industry in 2011, the auto companies will face a major challenge in the form of rising input costs, shortages of components and will have to walk a tight rope between protecting margins and hiking prices of vehicles.