Mercedes-Benz India on Friday said it is expecting a 10 per cent increase in its sales in the next one year as the future prospect for his company and the auto sector is looking up with a stable Congress-led government at the Centre.
India and the United States will finalize the contours, schedule of negotiations, and terms of reference for a proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA) during a three-day meeting beginning Tuesday. The agreement is expected to be finalized in two tranches, with the first phase focusing on goods trade. The US team, led by Assistant US Trade Representative for South and Central Asia Brendan Lynch, will be in India from March 25-29 to discuss the agreement. Both countries are aiming to conclude the first phase of the agreement by fall 2025.
From the 30-share pack, Hindustan Unilever, Tata Motors, Axis Bank, Nestle India, Asian Paints, ITC, Reliance Industries, Mahindra & Mahindra, IndusInd Bank and State Bank of India were among the laggards. Larsen & Toubro, Tata Steel, JSW Steel, HDFC Bank, Adani Ports, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bharti Airtel and PowerGrid were among the gainers.
The $14-billion bailout package for the troubled United States auto industry has collapsed in the Senate amid dispute over the wages paid to workers of the troubled manufacturing giants, according to a media report.
Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty on Friday reversed their six-session losing streak and rebounded more than 1 per cent on value buying in auto, IT, financial and energy stocks. Better than expected quarterly financial results of corporates also boosted investor sentiments even as uncertainties persisted over the escalating tensions in the Middle East, according to analysts. In a largely range-bound trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex rose 634.65 points or 1.01 per cent to settle at 63,782.80 points.
According to Mumbai-based auto analysts and dealers, cars are currently carrying an average inventory of about 25 days while two-wheelers are 20-25 days. Usually, cars carry an inventory of 12-15 days while two-wheelers have an inventory level of 10-15 days. Although the term inventory is used for semi or partly finished goods, it also explains completely finished goods, which are ready for sale.
Auto sales continued to break record for the fourth consecutive month in October, with total vehicles sold in the country last month stood at 14,60,655 units.
Siemens's share price has lost ground in the past few sessions following weak management commentary. The management indicated challenges to the growth outlook due to stagnant private capex and concerns over semiconductor shortages for digital industries. Government infra-spending may regain momentum from January 2025.
Tamil Nadu -- often dubbed as India's own Detroit due to its thriving automobile manufacturing ecosystem -- is in no mood to miss the EV bus either. Recent developments attest to it. Vietnamese electric vehicle (EV) maker VinFast has promised a $2 billion plant in the southern state. And as promised earlier, the work on Tata Motors-JLR plant will kick off next week, on September 28, after the foundation stone laying ceremony.
Industry expects sales to remain depressed in the coming festive season.
Benchmark Sensex advanced 110 points in a choppy trade on Wednesday, extending its gains to the fourth day in a row helped by buying in HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and fresh foreign fund inflows. The 30-share barometer rose by 110.58 points or 0.14 per cent to settle at 80,956.33 with 14 of its constituents ending with gains and 16 stocks with losses. During the day, it jumped 399.64 points or 0.49 per cent to 81,245.39 and dipped to a low of 80,630.53.
Retail sales of automobiles in the domestic market saw a 7.73 per cent year-on-year decline in October this year at 21,17,596 units, mainly due to dip in two-wheeler uptake with the inauspicious period of Shraddh affecting new purchases, the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) said on Monday. Retail sales of automobiles in the domestic market stood at 22,95,099 units in October 2022, FADA said in a statement. Two-wheeler retail sales were at 15,07,756 units last month, as against 17,25,043 units in the year-ago period, down 12.60 per cent, as per the latest data by FADA.
The Indian automobiles and auto components industry is likely to create additional employment for 25 million people by 2016, said experts at an auto industry conference in in Ahmedabad.
Auto majors report positive sales figs for November.
At Srinagar's famed Lal Chowk, Rediff.com's Syed Firdaus Ashraf meets a computer engineer who drives an auto for a living and discovers that Kashmiris are more interested in finding jobs than discussing the assembly election.
Passenger vehicle wholesales in India touched a record high of 42,18,746 units in the financial year 2023-24, registering a year-on-year growth of 8.4 per cent on the back of robust demand for utility vehicles, industry body SIAM said on Friday. As per the latest data issued by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), the overall passenger vehicle dispatches stood at 38,90,114 units in fiscal year 2022-23. Two-wheeler sales were up 13.3 per cent last fiscal at 1,79,74,365 units, as compared to 1,58,62,771 units in the financial year 2022-23.
Finance Minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharaman has presented a forward-looking Budget, reinforcing the government's commitment to 'Reform, Perform, and Transform'.
At the end of May, out of 26,500 outlets about 60 per cent showrooms and 80 per cent workshops were operational across the country.
Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Tata Motors reported a decline in wholesales in September as the companies curtailed dispatches to dealers to reduce inventory build-up amid a decline in demand. Maruti Suzuki India reported a 4 per cent dip in total domestic passenger vehicle wholesales last month to 144,962 units compared to 150,812 units in the year-ago month. The auto major said sales of mini segment cars, comprising Alto and S-Presso, grew marginally to 10,363 units against 10,351 units in September 2023.
Indian companies also hold a considerable share of the car, bus, and three-wheeler markets in the country.
The Detroit bailout isn't about saving the U.S. auto industry, it's about Democrats and Republicans jockeying for power.
American auto industry's Big Three appear close to securing a bailout, with Wall Street Journal reporting that the White House and top Democrats have agreed in-principle for a $15 billion rescue plan -- less than half the amount sought by GM, Ford and Chrysler.
The British auto industry is expected to witness 40,000 job losses over the next three years, mainly due to falling demand for cars, says a media report.
Industry sees second-highest monthly growth after November.
The Indian auto industry, which was heading towards negative growth territory, managed to stay in the positive zone in the fiscal ended March 31, thanks to the government's stimulus packages, recording a 0.71 per cent increase in total vehicle sales.
With a slew of new players entering the Indian small car market, segment leaders like Maruti Suzuki India and Hyundai Motor India will face challenge to their domination.
From the 30 Sensex firms, Larsen & Toubro, Reliance Industries, Axis Bank, Asian Paints, Tata Motors, Bajaj Finance, Maruti, Bajaj Finserv, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Titan, Adani Ports and HDFC Bank were the major laggards. JSW Steel emerged as the only gainer.
From the 30 Sensex firms, Mahindra & Mahindra, Infosys, Kotak Mahindra Bank, JSW Steel, Adani Ports, Tata Motors, Adani Ports, ITC and Titan were the major laggards. HDFC Bank, Bharti Airtel, Reliance Industries, Asian Paints and State Bank of India were the gainers.
Prices of various car models -- ranging from entry-level hatchbacks to high-end luxury offerings -- are set to rise as automakers have announced price hikes with effect from January. Carmakers cite an increase in input costs and operational expenses as the main reason to implement price increases from the next month. Industry experts, however, note that the exercise is also undertaken by automakers every year in December to shore up sales volume in the last month of the year, as customers postpone buyouts to later months to get the new year manufactured units.
If Tesla comes in, India's position as a manufacturing hub will rise many notches, as it will become only the second country, after China, to have both Apple as well as Tesla.
The automobile sector is considered a good indicator of economic health. It has a very long value chain, from primary materials, like metals, glass and plastic, to value-added high-end electronic components, specialised alloys, and software.
The central government will invest Rs 1,700 crore (Rs 17 billion) in setting up world-class automotive testing and R&D infrastructure with foreign collaboration.
A sharp fall in the equity market made investors poorer by Rs 5.29 lakh crore on Tuesday when the BSE benchmark Sensex tumbled over 800 points. A host of negative triggers -- muted quarterly earnings, continuous foreign fund outflows and weak trends in Asian and European markets -- dragged the benchmark indices lower. The BSE benchmark gauge tumbled 820.97 points or 1.03 per cent to settle at 78,675.18.
Ahead of the Budget, the auto industry is understood to have asked the government to reduce excise duty and remove the additional Rs 15,000 tax imposed on big cars to minimise the gap with those of small cars.
The index could be vulnerable to a bigger fall given the present market dynamics.
However, while Splendor's annual sales surged 31.7 per cent to 3.638 million units between 2019 and 2024, Hero's other models suffered sharp drops.
The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday cleared the Rs 13,180 crore project by Yuzhan Technology, part of Taiwan's Foxconn Group, at Kancheepuram. The unit is reportedly expected to assemble smartphone display modules, which will be one of the first such units to cater to Apple's growing presence in the country. The unit is expected to generate at least 14,000 jobs. Of the 14 existing manufacturing units in the Apple supply chain, seven are based in Tamil Nadu.
Auto sector cheers RBI rate cut as 'festival gift'
The life insurance industry does not have a good track record when it comes to passing on tax benefits to policyholders, points out Harsh Roongta.