India car sales rise 9.5% in Sept; rate cuts, new models to boost sales 6-8% this year

New Delhi: Domestic passenger car sales rose 9.48 percent to 1,69,590 units in September from 1,54,898 units in the same month a year ago, buoyed by new launches and a recovery in Asia’s third-largest economy, industry data released on Friday showed. Total passenger vehicle sales rose 3.8 percent from a year earlier to 232,167 vehicles in September, according to the data released by Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM). [caption id=“attachment_2441218” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  More cars are sold. AFP[/caption] Motorcycle sales, however, declined 2.87 percent to 10,20,237 units last month from 10,50,420 units a year ago. Total two-wheeler sales in September declined 1.06 percent to 15,37,137 units as against 15,53,608 units in the same month last year. Sales of commercial vehicles were up 12.07 per cent at 62,845 units in September, SIAM said. Vehicle sales across categories registered a 0.45 percent decline to 18,81,673 units from 18,90,218 units in September 2014, it added. As banks cut their lending rates following four rounds of policy rate cuts totalling 125 basis points so far this year, SIAM expects vehicle sales to get a further 6-8 percent boost in the country. “Companies like Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Honda have been doing good due to new product launches, which is driving growth in the passenger car segment,” SIAM Deputy Director General Sugato Sen told PTI. Softening interest rates and comparatively cheaper fuel have also helped the growth in the passenger car segment, he added. As per SIAM estimates, at present, interest rates on car loans are hovering between 10.8% and 14.3% for various lenders, including public sector and private banks, as well as NBFCs. Various car models like Honda’s Jazz, Hyundai’s Creta, and Maruti Suzuki’s S-Cross have received a good response from customers in the domestic market during the month. Commenting on the outlook for remaining 2015-16 fiscal, Sen said that passenger car and utility segments are expected to grow marginally. “Motorcycle is expected to remain flat, scooters segment would also slow down a bit. In commercial vehicle segment, M&HCV segment would grow in double digits while light commercial vehicle segment would continue to be in negative territory,” he added. Sen said withdrawal of export incentives, high vehicle interest rates, and inclusion of certain items in the anti-dumping list, mostly concerning components, are some of the challenges facing the auto industry. During the month, market leader Maruti Suzuki India posted a growth of 7.94% in its domestic car sales at 87,916 units as against 81,447 units in the same month last year. Rival Hyundai Motor India saw its car sales increase marginally to 35,193 units as against 34,906 units in the year-ago month. Honda Cars India’s sales stood at 17,800 units as against 9,600 units in the same month last year, up 85.41%, SIAM said. Homegrown Tata Motors’ domestic car sales were at 10,226 units as compared with 9,765 units in the same month previous year, up 4.72%. Utility vehicles major Mahindra & Mahindra saw its sales decline 4.73% to 18,717 units as against 19,647 in September last year. Agencies