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Informist, Thursday, Mar. 5, 2026

 

--FADA: Feb total vehicle retail sales 2.41 mln units, up 25.6% on year
--FADA: Feb passenger vehicle retail sales 394,768 units, up 26.1% on year
--FADA: Feb 2-wheeler retail sales 1.70 mln units, up 25% on year
--FADA: Feb CV retail sales 100,820 units, up 28.9% on year
--FADA: Feb 3-wheeler retail sales 117,130 units, up 24.4% on year
--FADA: Feb tractor retail sales 89,418 units, up 36.4% on year
--FADA: Apr-Feb total vehicle retail sales 26.95 mln units, up 12.1% on year
--FADA: PV inventory levels down by 5 days to 27-29 days
--FADA: Industry may move to stable growth in next 3 mos post strong rebound
--FADA: Some 2-wheeler dealers flag elections, uncertainty over fuel price

--FADA: See strong PV sales in Mar, PV sales in Apr-May may be normal to soft

 

NEW DELHI – Retail automobile sales in February jumped 26% on year but fell almost 12% on month to 2.41 million units as most segments, barring construction equipment, registered robust growth, data from the Federation of Automobile Dealers Association showed Thursday. "The strong performance during the month indicates that the policy-led confidence in the market, particularly following GST 2.0, is now translating into sustained demand across multiple vehicle segments," FADA President C. S. Vigneshwar said in a release.

 

Dealerships sold 1.70 million two-wheelers in February, up 25% on year but down 8% on month. "Dealers attributed this performance to improved rural liquidity following good crop outcomes, attractive marketing schemes and better affordability post GST revisions, while the marriage season and new product introductions also supported enquiries," Vigneshwar said. Dealerships in some regions continued to report supply constraints for select models.

 

Passenger vehicles' retail sales in February grew 26% on year but fell 23% on month to 394,768 units. Robust demand was limited by production constraints, which led to inventory levels moderating by five days from January to 27-29 days in February, closer to FADA's recommended inventory levels of 21 days.

 

Retail sales of passenger vehicles in urban areas grew 21% on year while in rural areas they grew at a faster rate of 34% on year. "The sharper rural growth is particularly encouraging as it is supporting the sale of small cars, even as SUVs and utility vehicles continue to drive overall volumes. Improved affordability following GST rationalisation, the marriage season and healthy booking pipelines supported by new model introductions also aided demand during the month," Vigneshwar said.

 

Retail sales of three-wheelers grew 24% on year but fell nearly 8% on month to 117,130 units in February. Electric passenger rickshaws, goods carriers, passenger carriers, and personal carriers all reported robust year-on-year sales growth.

 

Commercial vehicle sales grew 29% on year but fell 6% on month to 100,820 units in February, with strong double-digit growth registered by almost all sub-segments on the back of positive demand after the cut in goods and services tax buoyed secondary demand and bulk purchases, FADA said. "Dealers across regions reported improved freight availability, steady e-commerce activity and infrastructure-linked demand supporting fleet additions. However, some pockets saw supply constraints for certain models, though the overall pipeline of bookings and market movement remained encouraging," Vigneshwar said.

 

OUTLOOK

Around 76% of the dealers surveyed by FADA expect sales to grow in March while around 20% see a "stable" market and the rest see a decline. "Demand is expected to be supported by the confluence of multiple festivals such as Navratri, Ramzan, Ugadi, Gudi Padwa and Eid, along with the financial year-end buying cycle, which traditionally accelerates vehicle purchases across segments," FADA said. Dealers are cautiously optimistic about March sales, expecting festive demand and year-end dynamics to keep retail momentum intact.

 

For Mar-May, around 67% of dealers surveyed by FADA expect to see a growth in sales compared to their outlook in January for Feb-Apr, when around 80% of them had expected a growth. "This suggests that while the market is still on a growth path, expectations are gradually normalising after the strong post-GST 2.0 bounce and the exceptionally robust start to the calendar year," FADA said.

 

Near-term support for the two-wheeler segment is expected to come from festivals, marriage season, healthy agri-cash flows, improved rural sentiment and carry-forward bookings, though some dealers have flagged state elections, supply-side issues and possible fuel price-led uncertainty arising out of global developments, FADA said. 

 

Passenger vehicle sales in April and May are expected to be "normal-to-soft" due to seasonal reasons, summer months, among other reasons. "For commercial vehicles, sentiment remains relatively steady, backed by economic activity, goods movement, infrastructure-led demand and year-end business closure, although liquidity and supply remain key monitorables," FADA said.  End

 

Reported by Anand JC

Edited by Vandana Hingorani

 

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