Two-wheeler sales hit a new low with manufacturers keeping their plants shut simultaneously in March when dealers were asked to close following a nationwide 21-day lockdown.
Sales of India’s top four two-wheeler makers -- Hero MotoCorp, Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI), Bajaj Auto and TVS Motor Company, who control nearly 90 percent of the domestic market, plummeted nearly 40 percent year-on-year (YoY) to 7.54 lakh units.
Hero MotoCorp, the country’s largest two-wheeler manufacturer, saw its domestic sales slump 42 percent YoY in March to 316,685 units.
Company officials claimed it held Bharat Stage IV (BS-IV) inventory to the tune of 1.5 lakh as of March 31. Hero will be able to sell only 10 percent of this inventory in India after the lockdown is lifted.
In March, the auto industry and the entire global economy faced an unprecedented disruption owing to the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19. This led to disruption of supply chains and halted production, leading to no retails, the Delhi-based company said.
To track all live updates from the coronavirus pandemic, click here…
For FY20, Hero recorded an 18 percent YoY drop in domestic sales at 6.23 million units.
Rival Honda beat the trend and posted a 11 percent growth in domestic sales to 2.45 lakh units in March.
Yadvinder Singh Guleria, Director – Sales & Marketing, Honda, said, “Despite all our efforts, FY20 has been a challenging year in more ways than one. COVID-19 derailed industry plans and has severely impacted the automobile ecosystem – right from supply chain to dealers."
Pune-based Bajaj Auto recorded 55 percent decline in volumes during March at 98,412 units. For Fy20, the maker of Pulsar and Avenger clocked domestic sales of 2.07 million units, a drop of 18 percent.
TVS Motor Company, the country’s third largest two-wheeler seller, recorded a 62 percent YoY drop in sales during March to just 94,103 units.
“The company started the transition to BS-VI emission norms in Q3 FY20. This effective planning helped the company ready BS-VI vehicle supplies in Q4. The company, including its dealers, have almost entirely retailed all BS-IV two-wheelers,” TVS said in a statement.
For FY20, TVS clocked domestic sales of 2.41 million, a fall of 23 percent YoY.
Eicher Motors-controlled Royal Enfield, which manufactures bikes under the brands Classic and Himalayan, saw a 44 percent drop in March sales to 32,630 units. In a statement, the management claimed to have liquidated its entire BS-IV inventory much before the March 31 deadline.
Vinod Dasari, CEO at Royal Enfield said, "It has been a challenging year for the industry from subdued market sentiment in initial quarters to the current global pandemic situation. We have completed sales of our entire BS-IV motorcycle stocks ahead of the regulatory deadline. While the industry currently continues to face headwinds, we are confident that in the long-term there will be a slow and steady recovery.”
Suzuki Motorcycle India clocked domestic sales of 33,930 units in March, a YoY fall of 42 percent.
Discover the latest business news, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
