Car Sales in India Dip 4%

Sales of passenger vehicles in India shrank 4% to 164,500 units in February, according to the Society of Automobile Manufacturers.

Volume has now dropped for two consecutive months, ending 14 months of year-on-year gains. SIAM cautions that March results will be “difficult” because of the negative impact of new taxes announced by the government.

Still, the society expects vehicle sales for the fiscal year ending March 31 to be 6%-8% above the previous 12-month period. SIAM says sales through the past 11 months rose nearly 8% to 2.53 million units.

The group predicts demand will grow about 11% in the new fiscal year that begins April 1.