Passenger vehicle retail sales witnessed 3 per cent on-year decline in May with customers delaying purchases in several states due to India-Pakistan conflict and further softening of demand for entry-level models, dealers' body FADA said on Friday. The passenger vehicle registrations last month stood at 302,214 units, as compared to 311,908 units in May 2024.
From the Sensex firms, Infosys declined by 3.54 per cent. Power Grid, Eternal, HCL Tech, Tata Consultancy Services, Bharti Airtel, IndusInd Bank, NTPC and HDFC Bank were the major laggards. Sun Pharma, Adani Ports, Bajaj Finance, State Bank of India and Tech Mahindra were the gainers.
Elon Musk-led Tesla Inc is yet to express interest in India's flagship scheme to attract global investment in electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing, said Union Minister for Heavy Industries H D Kumaraswamy on Monday. In contrast, multiple global automobile giants -- such as Mercedes-Benz, koda Auto Volkswagen, Hyundai Motor, and Kia Motors -- are keen to participate, the minister noted.
The US carmaker's entry into India is expected by the last quarter of the current financial year.
Inventories of rare earth magnets used in critical automotive components - particularly electric vehicle (EV) traction motors and power steering systems - could run dry by mid-July this year, according to rating agency Icra.
At the peak of the slowdown in December 2008, the government had announced a 4 per cent across the board cut in CENVAT that helped in reducing prices and spurred demand. Besides, the states were encouraged to buy more buses for urban transport under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission to give a fillip to the battered commercial vehicles segment.
Auto industry volumes have grown by 2.5 per cent overall, led by domestic sales of three-wheelers, two-wheelers and passenger vehicles (PVs) in the first quarter of this financial year. Analysts predict an 18 per cent growth in revenues for automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and profit growth of 69 per cent year-on-year (YoY). However, on a sequential basis, a decline in revenues as well as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (Ebitda) margins is expected.
'We have to be prepared for the larger disruption that is likely to take place.'
Geopolitical developments between India and Pakistan, quarterly earnings and macro data will be the key drivers of stock markets in the holiday-shortened week, say analysts.
'The August phenomenon of decline in sales occurs every year.' 'What they have done cleverly is, using the economic slowdown as an excuse, they want a package from the government to compensate the expenditure they will incur while converting BS4 to BS6.' 'That's why they are making a hue and cry.'
The launch of a range of electric motorbikes (e-bikes) by Bengaluru-based Ola Electric, a first for the company, has disconcerted the industry because the low price the firm claims to be offering has the potential to disrupt the market. On August 15, Ola unveiled its Roadster series e-bike with a starting-price at Rs 74,999. This new pricing undercuts the previous lowest price in the category, which was Rs 110,000.
From the Sensex basket, Tata Steel jumped over 5 per cent. Mahindra & Mahindra, JSW Steel, Tata Motors, Axis Bank, Sun Pharma, Reliance Industries and Maruti were the other biggest gainers. Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Titan, Wipro, Hindustan Unilever and Nestle were among the laggards.
On the exports front, Bajaj is under pressure in Bangladesh and Africa. On the domestic front, it could ride improvement in rural demand and new launches but it also has to cope with competitive intensity and a high base. The management projects 7-8 per cent volume growth in domestic 2W in financial year 2025 (FY25) with moderation in H2FY25 due to a high base Y-o-Y.
'Currently, EVs are about 30-50 per cent more expensive than ICE vehicles. I believe the inflection point for EVs will come when this price gap narrows to 20-25 per cent. That's when people will start coming in.'
Skoda Auto India, the Czech carmaker that has recently found success with its compact SUV Kylaq, says it remains committed to developing a fully localised electric vehicle (EV). The EV will be manufactured at its Chakan facility for both Indian market and exports.
Owing to the poor market conditions and tepid sentiments, the size of the show has shrunk compared to the last edition, which took place in 2018. A majority of the two-wheeler makers, and several car and commercial vehicle makers, have opted out of this year's show, which opens for the media on Wednesday.
Higher defence and agri credit allocation will encourage new vehicle buying which in turn will benefit the industry players.
The government on Friday announced several relief measures including deferring one-time registration fee, lifting the ban on purchase of petrol/diesel vehicles by its departments and allowing higher depreciation, but it remained non-committal on the demand for a reduction in GST rates.
Tata Indica, the Tata Group's big passenger car bet, was not delivering expected returns a year into its launch. Desperate, the Tata Motors brass, led by Ratan Tata, acceded to a meeting request from Ford Motors for a possible sale of the passenger vehicles division to the American auto major. Some people had advised Tata to sell the business, and the Ford officials came to Bombay House to hold talks.
Nayagam PP, a certified career counsellor and the founder of EduJob360, lists the top and emerging career streams in engineering.
Movement in the equity market this week will be guided by a host of macroeconomic data announcements, global trends and trading activity of foreign investors, analysts said. Stocks markets concluded the last week on a subdued note, as investors grappled with global uncertainties.
Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai Motor India on Monday reported a dip in passenger vehicle dispatches to dealers in the domestic market last month as the companies tried to adjust vehicle inventory amid slowing demand. Maruti Suzuki India said it "calibrated supplies" to the dealers, aligning with the industry's retail sales projections amid India-Pakistan conflict and a dip in sales of entry-level cars.
Passenger vehicles wholesales in India rose 1.3 per cent year-on-year to 335,629 units in April, automobile industry body SIAM said on Tuesday. The passenger vehicle (PV) dispatches from companies to dealers stood at 331,278 units in April 2023.
Industry insiders in India warn that any such move in the pharmaceutical sector could be counterproductive for the US as it may face increased drug shortages if tariffs are imposed on such imports.
Retail sales of vehicles across categories in India grew by 11.21 per cent at 32,08,719 units in November, as compared to 28,85,317 units in the same month last year riding on two-wheeler demand, Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations said in Monday. Retail sales of two-wheelers were at 26,15,953 units last month, as compared to 22,58,970 units in November 2023, a growth of 15.8 per cent buoyed by the festive spillover.
After a turnaround two years ago driven by heavy tax breaks currently available in Uttarakhand, this auto bulb industrial unit is now enjoying the benefits of slowdown in auto sector as it is mainly producing replacement bulbs only. "Sales in the auto sector have taken a nosedive during the past one year. So it is natural that our bulbs will be used in old vehicles," said Rajiv K Agarwal, managing director of GBPL, which situated at Patel Nagar, Dehra Dun.
Munjal Auto Industries Ltd redeemed 3,80,351 - 13.5% cumulative redeemable preference shares of Rs100 each.
Kia India unveiled its new purpose-built vehicle version of the Kia Caren at the Auto Expo 2023.
India on Monday imposed a 12 per cent provisional safeguard duty for 200 days on five steel product categories, including hot rolled coils, sheets and plates, to protect domestic players from surge in imports. The decision follows a recommendation for the same by the Commerce Ministry's investigation arm DGTR. Last month, the DGTR suggested to impose the duty.
Skoda Auto says growth this year could be slow compared to last year. "We would ideally like the growth to be same compared to last year, but this year it could be little less," said Kamal Basu, marketing head, Skoda Auto India.
'We are not asking for incentives, but at least taxation can be aligned such that the rupee tax on consumers remains the same.'
'Price competition is fierce, with many companies selling at zero margin.' 'This pricing pressure is challenging smaller companies and will likely drive some out of the market over time.'
A knee-jerk reaction, they said, could be detrimental to the fortunes of an industry that is highly dependent on the country given the huge competitive advantage it offers, in terms of cost and speed.
After auto components major Bosch Ltd, Sundaram-Clayton, Hero MotoCorp now announce temporary production shut down
The Indian industry is paranoid about the USA's plan to impose reciprocal tariffs and wants early conclusion of a bilateral trade agreement, sources said on Wednesday. They said that the talks for the proposed bilateral trade agreement are going well.
The budget has been neutral with positive bias for the auto component industry.
The 31st meeting of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council, held in December 2018, deferred a decision to reduce the GST rate for cement from 28 per cent to 18 per cent. This was despite recognising that cement - along with automobile parts - remained among the few mass-consumption items still taxed at the highest slab, which was originally meant for luxury and sin goods.
Operating margins have been the primary driver of corporate earnings in India in recent quarters, despite revenue growth suffering from weak consumer demand. Companies across sectors have reported a sharp improvement in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (Ebitda) margins over the past two years, benefiting from lower commodity and energy prices. Higher margins more than compensated for slower revenue growth, resulting in double-digit growth in net profit for five consecutive quarters.
US-based electric vehicle maker Tesla is looking to source components worth around $1.9 billion this year against $1 billion last year, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Wednesday. The minister said that going forward, demand for electric vehicles will increase and it will help in pushing the growth of the sector. "Tesla already last year bought one billion dollars of components from I think all of you sitting here.... I have the list of companies who supply to Tesla.
'The US is strongly placed to expand its crude supplies to India.'
