Auto dealers upset over OEMs pushing stocks without the sellers’ consent.
MUMBAI, Feb 7 (The CONNECT) – Auto have expressed their distress over the manufacturers piling up stocks on the former
Federation of Auto Dealers Associations (FADA) has said its members began expressing concerns about inventory being pushed to them without their consent.
“While such initiatives may serve broader business objectives, it is critical to align wholesale allocations with genuine demand to protect dealer viability and ensure healthy inventory management,” said FADA president C S Vigneshwar.
Meanwhile, February witnessed a broad-based downturn across all categories, a trend that was anticipated in our previous survey which projected a ‘Flat to De-growth’ sentiment for the month, Vigneshwar said releasing the monthly sales data.
Overall, the market closed with a -7% YoY decline, with 2W, 3W, PV, Trac and CV falling by 6%, 2%, 10%, 14.5% and 8.6% respectively.
The near-term outlook for auto retail in March 2025 is cautiously optimistic, with dealer expectations indicating that nearly 45% foresee growth, 40% expect flat performance and only 14% anticipate de-growth, FADA said.
Challenges remain for the auto business as five consecutive months of declining stock markets have dampened consumer confidence—with investors closing more SIPs rather than opening new ones and reduced discretionary spending driven by dented profitability.
Despite this, the convergence of multiple festivals—ranging from Holi and Gudi Padwa to the onset of Navratri—and year-end depreciation benefits is expected to provide a much-needed boost to vehicle purchases, dealers opined.
February 2025 data: In the 2W segment, despite an 8.57% FY YTD growth, retail sales dipped by 6.33% YoY. Urban areas experienced a sharper decline of 7.38% compared to a 5.5% drop in rural markets. Rural performance was better due to better agricultural sentiments and seasonal marriage demand. Dealers attributed this to inventory imbalances, aggressive pricing adjustments (notably post-OBD-2B), weak consumer sentiment, lower enquiry volumes and limited finance availability.
Concerns over slow-moving models and external economic pressures, such as liquidity constraints and inflation, further intensified these challenges.
The PV segment, despite a modest 4% YTD growth, saw retail sales fall sharply by -10.34% YoY. Dealers noted weak market sentiment which specially continues in the entry level category, delayed conversions, challenging targets and stressed that OEMs should avoid overburdening dealers with excessive inventory—a practice that risks unmanageable stock levels given the cyclical nature of the industry. This feedback underscores the need for greater alignment between national strategies and local dealer insights. Inventory levels in this segment remained in the range of 50-52 days.
The CV segment, which saw a modest YTD decline of -0.5%, retail sales dropped by -8.6% YoY. Dealers pointed to a challenging commercial environment, with weak sales in transportation sector, tightening finance norms and pricing pressures delaying customer decisions—particularly in bulk orders and institutional contracts.
While robust order bookings, notably in the tipper segment driven by increased government spending and steady supplies offered some relief, the prevailing negative sentiment and structural market shifts call for a more adaptive approach. There is cautious optimism that the market will improve in March as dealers recalibrate their targets to better align with current demand,FADA said.
Doing well, says Hyundai; Challenging, says Honda Cars
GURUGRAM: Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) recorded total monthly sales of 58,727 units in February 2025, comprising domestic sales of 47,727 units and export sales of 11,000 units, Tarun Garg, Whole-time Director and Chief Operating Officer, Hyundai Motor India Limited said.
“With a 6.8% YoY growth in export sales in February 2025, we are witnessing increasing global demand for our Made-in-India products, reflecting Hyundai’s strong acceptance worldwide. By optimizing exports, we will continue to reinforce HMIL’s position as a key export hub for Hyundai Motor Company. On the Domestic Sales front, despite geopolitical challenges, we remain optimistic that the proposed tax reforms in the Union Budget 2025 and improved liquidity will provide the much-needed demand boost to the market.”
Honda Cars India Ltd. (HCIL) said it registered total sales of 10,323 units in February’2025. Domestic sales of the company stood at 5,616 units and exports at 4,707 units in the month of February’25.
Kunal Behl, Vice President, Marketing & Sales, Honda Cars India Ltd. said, “The market conditions have been challenging for the auto industry where we saw reduced momentum in car registrations and difficulties in creating fresh demand during Feb as compared to last year. However, our recent launches of All New Amaze and Special editions of Elevate Black and City Apex with good response from market have helped us to create new excitement in our products and sustain sales in this tough period. With new benefits outlined in the Union Budget 2026 to boost overall consumer demand, we hope situation will improve in coming period. On the export front, we continue to post healthy volumes led by strong performance of Elevate and City in export markets.”
Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India said, the company’s total sales for February’25 stood at 4,22,449 units. This includes domestic sales of 3,83,918 units and 38,531 units exports.
It is worth mentioning that HMSI’s YTD FY25 (April’24 – Feb’25) total sales stand at 54,04,216 units. This includes domestic sales of 49,25,241 units and 4,78,975 units exports.
