February saw a lot of movement in the automotive industry in India. Right from the most successful auto expo that saw 15 global models and more than 2 dozen domestic vehicles, explaining the determination the automakers have in the Indian Market, to the announcement from the Finance Minister P.Chidambaram, about slashing the excise duties on automobiles by 4%.
While the resultant sales after the cut in price by most car manufacturers following the excise duty slash will be seen in the March sales figures, automakers posted a stable February sale as demand remained weak.
Maruti Suzuki's total sale rose 1.8% during the month as the company sold 99,758 units as against 97,955 units in February 2013. Hyundai's domestic sales remained at 34,006 units when compared to 34,002 units in February 2013. Meanwhile Honda cars India reported a two-fold increase in domestic sales at 14,543 units. Ford sales plunged 51.42% to 6,799 units, while Toyota's Indian arm sold 10,100 units as compared to 12,756 units in February 2013.
Tata Motors reported a 35.56% decline in total vehicle sales to 39,951 units. Sales of passenger vehicles for February 2014 were at 11,325 nos. Mahindra & Mahindra's domestic sales stood at 39,338 units last month, as against 44,399 in the same month previous year, down 11.39%.
The two-wheeler space saw HMSI grow by 44% at 328,521 units while southern giant TVS Motor Corp sales remained at 165,696 vehicles. Hero MotoCorp sold 504,181 units in the month of February as compared to 501,271 units in the corresponding month last year. Yamaha registered a growth of 32.5% in domestic sales as the company sold 42,548 units in February 2014 as against 32,097 units last year.
The month of February has seen its share of highs and lows but we are keen to see the figures after the month of March as all manufacturers expect a spike in sales.
