The Indian auto industry continues to see a downfall in sales as it nears the end of the fourth quarter of FY23. February 2022 saw a drop of 23.4% in the overall vehicle sales. The worst hit was the two-wheeler segment, as it witnessed a 27.2% drop on a YoY basis. The PV segment saw a drop of 6.5%, while the three-wheeler declined by 2.23%. The quadricycle segment reported sales of 10 units in February.
However, the industry saw 4.8% growth in the overall exports, with the 2W segment witnessing an increase of 3% in exports and the PV segment growing by 44.8%, compared to February last year. However, the three-wheeler segment fell by 12.5% in February 2022 compared to the previous year.
Rajesh Menon, Director General, SIAM, said, “Continuing supply side challenges like semiconductor shortages, increase in cost due to new regulations, higher commodity prices, higher logistics cost etc. have impacted overall sales in the auto industry. Industry is closely watching the possible impact of the on-going conflict in Ukraine, as Global Supply Chains could come under stress.”
Passenger Vehicles
The PV segment in February 2022 saw sales of 262,984 units as compared to 281,380 in the same month last year, translating to a growth of -6.5% on a yearly basis.
Apart from the utility vehicle sub-segment, which saw total sales of 120,122 units- a growth of 5% on a YoY basis- the other two sub-segments, Passenger Cars and Vans, saw degrowth of 13.8% and 22.6%, respectively, by closing the month with sales figures of 133,572 units for the passenger cars and 9,290 units for the van sub-segment.
In terms of exports, the overall passenger vehicle segment saw nearly 45% growth in February this year to 51,213 units over the same month last year.
Apart from Vans which saw a degrowth of 66% with exports of 75 units in the month of February, the passenger car and the utility vehicles segment saw a growth of 44% by exporting 33515 units and 48.8% on a YoY basis with exports of 17,623 units, respectively.
Two Wheeler
The 2W segment continues to see a downfall in its sales as it reports a total sales of 1,037,994 units to close the month of February 2022, translating to a 27.2% drop on a YoY basis.
Mopeds had the worst fall in sales in the segment, with sales of 35,848 units in the month of February 2022 translating to a degrowth of 30.31% on a YoY basis.
Motorcycle/step-throughs weren’t far behind, with a YoY decrease in sales of 27.71%, concluding the month with 658,009 units. Likewise, the Scooter/Scooterettee category declined by 26%, with 344,137 units in February 2022 compared to February 2021.
Three Wheeler
Unlike the other two segments, the three-wheeler segment relatively fared well with the unfriendly conditions. Nevertheless, the segment saw a drop of 2.23% YoY, closing February 2022 with sales of 27,039 units.
The goods carrier sub-segment reported a 15.15% drop to 7,670 units in February compared to the same month last year. However, the passenger carrier segment grew almost 4% YoY to 19,369 units during the month under review.