Indians splurge on vehicles like never before during 42-day festive period

The celebration in the Indian automotive industry just refuses to dial down on decibel levels and on expected lines, the 42-day festive period starting with the first day of Navratri saw unprecedented sales of vehicles in every category and segment.

Data released by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) shows that more vehicles were brought during the festive period than in any festive period of previous years. This festive period is categorised as days between the first day of Navratri and till 15 days after Dhanteras each year.

The three-wheeler segment remained the biggest force in the market, witnessing a sharp 41 per cent increase in sales in the festive period this year, compared with the festive period of 2022. Two-wheeler sales also jumped by as much as 21 per cent - aided generously by demand from rural markets, while commercial vehicles' sales climbed by eight per cent.

The passenger vehicle (PV) segment remains buoyant with sales increasing by a very respectable 10 per cent in the aforementioned period. FADA especially notes that while SUVs remained the hot favourite, what also helped the PV segment is that inventory levels are very close to all-time high levels. Earlier on, factors such as semiconductor shortage had led to high wait times but with easing of production processes, these times have also come down significantly.

Last year, India overtook Japan as the world's third-largest vehicle market and is now only behind China and the United States. While pent-up demand from Covid times fuelled some of the demand, many of the other strong indicators include introduction of new and updated models, positive economic indicators and a strong infra push that is helping the automotive market here.