SUVs continue to lead passenger vehicle sales in May

The start of what looks to be a good monsoon, return of positive consumer sentiment and a pipeline of new models could be just what the doctor ordered to drive automobile sales in India in the ongoing fiscal. The passenger vehicle sector has registered consistent growth for many months now, driven by consumer demand for new passenger cars as well as utility vehicles.

SUVs, in fact, have been the accelerator and currently account for a fourth of all passenger vehicle sales in India. It was no different in the month of May 2017, when UVs accounted for 27.75 percent of total passenger vehicles sold. Passenger vehicle sales rose to 2,51,642 units in May compared to 2,31,640 units sold same month last year.

Of the total passenger vehicle sales last month, UVs comprised 69,845 units, along with 1,66,630 passenger cars (66.21 percent) and 15,167 vans (6 percent). While May 2017 volumes were up 8.63 percent year-on-year, they were down compared to April 2017's 2,77,602 units (up 14.68 percent). However, this can be attributed to some consumers delaying purchases, particularly of SUVs, in view of the expected price reductions as a result of GST kicking in from July 1. So, a bumper passenger vehicle sale can be expected next month.

Maruti Suzuki India, which is the bellwether of the Indian car market, powered last month's sales with a total of 1,30,248 (up 15.10 percent) units sold. Interestingly, thanks to surging demand for the Baleno and Vitara Brezza, the company has increased its passenger vehicle market share by 3.23 percent from 48.60 percent to a humungous 51.83 percent within a year.

Other players who contributed to the overall sales were Hyundai Motor India with 42,007 units (up 1.59 percent), Mahindra & Mahindra with 20,270 units (up 3.23 percent), Tata Motors with 12,499 units (up 32.18 percent), Honda Cars India with 11,278 units (up 13.30 percent), Renault India with 8,639 units (up 3.55 percent) and Ford India with 6,742 units (up 16.64 percent).

Cumulative sales for the April-May 2017 period reveal that passenger vehicle sales grew by 11.73 percent year-on-year. Within PVs, sales of cars, utility vehicles and vans grew by 11.15 percent, 16.19 percent and 0.37 percent, respectively.