Auto Players Optimistic About Growth In Sales During Festive Period

The passenger vehicle industry clocked a growth of 7 per cent during the Jan-April period, however, in May-Sep period, there was a decline of nearly 2-3 per cent resulting in the inventory piling up

Typically, the festive season begins with Onam and ends with Diwali every year.

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Auto industry players are optimistic about strong performance in the current festive season and expect it to boost overall consumer sentiment and help set the momentum for the rest of the year amid weakening demand. 

Typically, the festive season begins with Onam and ends with Diwali every year. Speaking to PTI, Hardeep Singh Brar, National Head of Sales and Marketing, Kia India, said that the industry experienced muted sales in the last three to four months in comparison to the same period a year earlier.

“With pent-up demand of the last few months there and government investment starting to flow in, we feel things should start improving from here onwards,” he added.

In terms of booking pace, the executive said that momentum was good in September which gave an optimistic indication for October. “And this time, all festivals are in October..we expect about 5-10 per cent sales growth during the period as compared to last year,” he pointed out.

The passenger vehicle industry clocked a growth of 7 per cent during the January-April period, however, in May-September period, there was a decline of nearly 2-3 per cent resulting in the inventory piling up.

Saurabh Vatsa, MD, Nissan Motor India, stated that the whole industry remains hopeful of the festive season bringing in some much needed boost after experiencing three tough months. “I think it has been a challenging period. The festive period will define the quarter, and the third quarter will define what happens in the remaining part of the year. Everybody is looking forward to the festive seasons, especially from the industry,” he said.

Partho Banerjee, Senior Executive Officer (Marketing and Sales), Maruti Suzuki India, expressed that the firm is planning to boost sales by bringing in some limited edition models. He noted that the company clocked a recovery in sales during Ganesh Chaturthi and Janmashtami and has been successful in generating volumes according to the requirements of the business.