Hero MotoCorp, HMSI dispatch record number of two-wheelers
Hero MotoCorp's dealers sold a total of 200,000 two-wheelers on Dhanteras, while HMSI saw its sales more than double to 165,000 units
Mumbai: Dealers of India’s top motorcycle and scooter manufacturers dispatched a record number of units to customers on Dhanteras, considered an auspicious day for purchases ahead of Diwali.
Market leader Hero MotoCorp Ltd’s dealers sold a total of 200,000 two-wheelers on the day, up 80% from a year earlier. Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India Pvt. Ltd (HMSI) the second-largest, saw its sales more than double to 165,000 units, the companies said in separate statements.
TVS Motor Co. Ltd and Bajaj Auto Ltd did not release details about sales on Dhanteras. A TVS spokesperson said that the company will release consolidated sales on 1 November.
Typically, automobile companies report dispatch to dealers and not customers.
An improvement in customer sentiment and better economic outlook has boosted vehicles sales in India. Motorcycle and scooter sales in the world’s second-largest market for such vehicles rose 16.4% in the six months ended 30 September to 8.1 million units from year ago, according to industry lobby group Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam).
India’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew 5.7% in the June quarter, the fastest pace in two-and-half years after two consecutive years of sub-5% growth. Economists polled by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) predicted in a survey released in September that the economy will grow 5.3% in 2014-15, slightly slower than the 5.4% forecasted in a previous survey in March. Growth is expected to rebound to 6.4% in 2015-16, according to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) April World Economic Outlook report. The festive season, and Dhanteras in particular, has provided further momentum to two-wheeler sales.
“The strong retail numbers reported by the companies show that the two-wheeler market has bucked the larger trend," said Mitul Shah, senior analyst at Karvy Stock Broking Pvt. Ltd, adding that nothing much has changed on the ground except sentiments.
“This Dhanteras has been a phenomenal day of retail sales for Hero MotoCorp," A. Srinivasu, head of national sales at Hero MotoCorp, said in the statement. He said the company had anticipated this demand and was prepared with 600,000 plus dispatch in September.
On Wednesday, Hero MotoCorp’s shares rose 4.03% to ₹ 3,115.95 on the BSE, while the exchange’s benchmark Sensex gained 0.8% to close 26,787.23 points.
It was a bountiful Dhanteras for HMSI too. In an interview, Yadvinder S. Guleria, vice-president (sales and marketing) with HMSI, said sales surpassed the company’s expectations by at least 10-15%. Close to 40% of Honda’s sales came from central India, including Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh, and were driven by the Activa scooter models and Dream series of motorcycles.
“Interestingly, we saw good traction even in the mass segment, sales of which are seasonal in nature," said Guleria, adding the company was prepared for the spurt in sales three to four months ahead of Dhanteras.
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