Indian Auto Wholesales Grow 2.3% In September 2023

The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) released the industry wholesale numbers for September 2023 with the industry posting a nominal growth of 2.3 per cent year-on-year. Total wholesales for September 2023 stood at 21,41,208 units – up from 20,93,286 units in the same month last year.

Passenger vehicle wholesales in the domestic market grew 3 per cent from 3,07,389 units to 3,16,908 units in September 2023. Within the segment, passenger car and van sales declined year-on-year – the former falling from 1,42,727 units in 2022 to 1,11,889 units in 2023. Van sales meanwhile declined from 12,903 units to 11,147 units. The segment however was propped up by a growth in utility vehicle sales which posted a year-on-year growth of 28 per cent - from 1,51,759 units in 2022 to 1,93,872 units in September 2023.

In the two-wheeler segment, wholesales for the month grew by a flat 0.84 per cent from 17,35,199 units to 17,49,794 units in 2023. Within the segment scooter and motorcycle sales both posted year-on-year growth though sales for mopeds slid from 47,613 units last year to 44,943 units.

Moving to the industry’s performance during Q2 FY2024, passenger vehicle wholesales reached a new high posting a 4.7 per cent growth over Q2 FY2023. The segment reported sales of 10.74,189 units – up from 10,26,309 units in the same period last year. As with the monthly sales, the quarterly sales also showed a similar trend within the PV segment with passenger car and van sales seeing a decline while SUV sales surged.

The two-wheeler market however saw a decline in wholesales as compared to 2022. Sales were down a marginal 1.6 per cent to 45,98,442 units as against 46,73,931 units last year. Both the commercial vehicle and three-wheeler segments posted upticks in total dispatches with the latter also reporting its best-ever wholesales in Q2 at 1,95,215 units – up from 1,20,319 units last year.

Commenting on sales data of Q2 for 2023-24, Vinod Aggarwal, President, SIAM said, “Passenger Vehicle, Three Wheelers, and Commercial Vehicle segments continue to witness growth in Q2 of 2023-24, although Two Wheelers wholesales numbers have posted a marginal de-growth, compared to Q2 of last year, the retails have been encouraging. As we get into the festival season, all segments of the Industry are optimistic and look towards posting good numbers in Q3 as well. This growth in the automobile sectors can be attributed to the all-round Economic growth of the country, which is also enabled through the conducive Government policies.”