Domestic car sales up 15.37%

Snapping a nine-month streak of decline, domestic passenger car sales grew by 15.37 per cent to 1,33,486 units in August this year, compared to 1,15,705 units in the same month last year.

Industry body Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, however, played down the feat saying the growth was mainly due to low base effect as a result of the month-long lockout last year at the country's largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India Manesar plant.

"This (growth) is not a reflection of the market conditions.

“This is mainly due to Maruti's numbers compared to last year.

“The tough market conditions still remain.

Interest rates are high, fuel prices continue to be high while sentiments are extremely low," SIAM Deputy Director General Sugato Sen told reporters in New Delhi.

He said the positive growth seen in August is unlikely to be sustained in September and a recovery in the market is likely to happen only in the next couple of quarters.

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"For this fiscal, we are staring down at a negative growth of car sales. If we have to match last year's 2.7 million units, we need to be selling over two lakh units each month but in the last three months, we have sold less than that," Sen added.

In August, market leader MSI doubled its domestic car sales at 63,499 units as against 31,653 in the same month last year.

The company had declared a month-long lockout at its Manesar plant in August 2012 following a violent labour unrest in which a senior executive was killed.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd registered a marginal increase during the month at 28,281 units as against 28,192 units last year. Tata Motors saw its sales plunge by 50.57 per cent to 8,761 units as against 17,727 units in August last year.

Another homegrown major, Mahindra & Mahindra, which mostly sells utility and sports utility vehicles, saw its domestic passenger vehicles sales decline by 25.45 per cent to 18,137 units during the month.