Amidst the high interest rates and upwards shooting petrol prices, the Indian automobile industry has witnessed lowest car sales figures in last nine months in July 2012. The total car sales in India stood at 1.43 lakh units during this month. However, year on year car sales increased 6.7 percent during this month.
The July car sales got majorly affected by the shutdown of the Maruti’s Manesar plant on 19th July following the deadly violence between workers and Management. As the company is yet to resume the production there, it is likely to affect the production in the month of August also.
Speaking on the industry’s performance during this month, Vishnu Mathur, director general of Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), said, "The demand has been weak and sales have been tapering off as there is no improvement in the macro economic conditions." He added, "Interest rates on auto loans are high, while high fuel prices is also impacting consumer sentiments, while demand for petrol cars is on a permanent slide."
