Mumbai, March 11 (Bureau) Domestic automobile sales witnessed a 23.49 per cent decline in the month of February at 13,28,027 units, largely impacted by supply side challenges like shortage of semiconductors and higher costs, according to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM). The auto industry had reported total sales of 17,35,909 units in the corresponding month last year, SIAM said in its report released on Friday. The total production of passenger vehicles, three wheelers, two wheelers and quadricycles in the month of February 2022 were, 17,95,514 units, it said.
Domestic sales of passenger vehicles stood at 262,984 units in February 2022, as against 281,380 units, a year-ago. Similarly, sales of three-wheelers and two-wheelers declined to 27,039 units and 10,37,994 units respectively, from 27,656 units and 14,26,865 units in February 2021. Commenting on the February 2022 sales data, Rajesh Menon, Director General, SIAM said the sales have declined compared to February 2021, across passenger vehicle, two-wheeler and three-wheeler categories. “Continuing supply side challenges like semiconductor shortages, increase in cost due to new regulations, higher commodity prices, higher logistics cost etc., have impacted overall sales in the auto industry,” Menon said.
He further added that the industry is closely watching the possible impact of the on-going conflict in Ukraine, as global supply chains could come under stress. For the 11 months of FY2022, the total sales dropped to 15,177,293 units from 16,146,902 in April-February of FY2021. Total production of passenger vehicles, three wheelers, two wheelers and quadricycles in April 2021 – February 2022 were 20,042,351 units.