Auto Industry Looks at Government Support to Increase Exports

Up against road blocks in traditional car export markets, Indian auto industry is looking to government support in its effort to enter new geographies. Due to various regulatory issues in big export markets like Algeria and Sri Lanka and slowdown in Europe, in the April-September period, passenger car exports are down 8.27 per cent to 2,68,727 units as compared to 2,92,952 units in the same period of previous fiscal.

Now car makers are looking at new avenues and have identified about over 20 new regions to keep overseas sales ticking. "To get into these new markets we would require policy support from the government," Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) Director General Vishnu Mathur told PTI.

Elaborating the demand, he said taxation and non-tariff barriers in those markets make exports from India uncompetitive and want the issue to be taken up at government level. "In Sri Lanka, we are facing high taxation issues while Algeria has brought in changes in the technical regulations overnight, thereby impacting the exports to these markets," Mathur said.

He said that SIAM is in talks with government to help them reach out to over 20 high potential export markets, including those in Latin America, Africa and Middle East to ramp up exports. "As part of the overall strategy to enhance exports of passenger cars, we are looking at over 20 markets because the the traditional export markets are not doing well," Mathur said, adding, SIAM has already communicated with the government in this regard.

Last month, the passenger car exports were down 9.92 per cent to 50,860 units as against 56,460 units in the year-ago period. Total exports of passenger vehicle (PVs) that include passenger cars, utility vehicles and vans, also declined marginally to 3,07,473 units in the April-September period as compared to the previous fiscal.

In September PVs segment export declined by 5.45 per cent to 57,609 units, as compared to 60,928 units in the same period last year.

Mathur said issues like tariff barriers, high taxation and change in technical parameters in some of the major export markets has led the Indian automakers to look out for additional markets. "Europe has been a big export market for us but it is not doing well," Mathur said.