Tepid Q2 impacts H1 sales, OEMs look to ride on festive season demand

Even as economic factors such as a growing GDP, bountiful monsoon and a slew of infrastructural projects remain on the uptick, the Indian automotive industry, especially the passenger vehicle (PV) segment, still witnessed a rather slow second quarter (Q2), due to fuel prices rising stratospherically and importantly, a comparatively high year-ago base when sales were shooting through the roof on the back of GST-led tax benefits from July to September 2017.

Looking at September 2018, the industry as a whole clocked cumulative sales of 2,584,096 units (+3.72%), with key vehicle categories registering low to moderate growth. While passenger vehicles, ...