Festive Season Helps The Automotive Industry Rally Forwards

As the automotive industry continues to slowly but steadily bounce back from the lockdown slump, it has received a much-needed boost in the form of the festive season. November brought with it the auspicious Dhanteras-Diwali period, prompting many potential buyers to finally make that long-awaited purchase. The end result, according to the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations of India (FADA), is a healthy 29.32 percent month-on-month growth.

Unfortunately, a closer look reveals the two-wheeler subset has not performed so well. Motorcycles and scooters registered 6.31 percent lower sales in the 42-day festive season this year compared to last year. There is no getting around the fact that 2020 has been a tough year, with two-wheeler sales in November seeing an unfortunate 21.4 percent year-on-year drop.

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The lion’s share of growth has come from the four-wheeler passenger vehicle segment, which is up by a heartening 13.6 percent compared to October. It has even managed a 4.17 percent year-on-year growth! Inventory periods for four-wheelers are hovering around the 25-30 day mark, which is close to the 21-day recommendation by FADA. For two-wheelers, however, inventory levels continue to sit in the high range of 45-50 days.

According to FADA, the focus in the two-wheeler segment has shifted from 100cc to 125cc and beyond in recent times. With the festive season now over, the association has cautioned dealers to keep a check on inventory levels, as it expects post-festival demand levels to remain subdued.