Domestic automobile retail sales declined 4 per cent year on-year in July amid drop in demandfor passenger vehicles and two wheelers, dealers' body FADA said on Thursday. Overall registrations dropped to 19,64,213 units last month, as compared to 20,52,759 units in July 2024. Passenger vehicle sales declined marginally year-on-year to 3,28,613 units in July, as against 3,31,280 units in the same month last year. The pullback largely stems from a high-base effect in July 2024, Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) said in a statement.FADA noted that while auspicious delivery days, plus targeted schemes and rural marketing, drove hinterland volumes; urban demand stayed muted due.  With inventory levels steady at around 55 days, calibrated discounting, streamlined finance facilitation and intensified urban outreach will be crucial for sustaining festive-season growth, it added. Two-wheeler registrations saw a decline of 6 per cent year-on-year to 13,55,504 units in July as crop-sowing activities and prolonged heavy rains dampened rural footfalls more sharply than urban demand.Commercial vehicle retail sales grew marginally to 76,439 units last month, as compared to 76,261 units in the year-ago period. Dealers cited new-model launches, aggressive marketing support, bulk institutional orders and timely stock availability as key drivers, alongside targeted schemes that bolstered school-bus volumes. In contrast, rural haulage demand remained fragmented amid heavy rainfall, seasonal softness in cement, coal and construction logistics, and slower financier disbursements, prompting many buyers to defer purchases to the post-monsoon period, it added. Tractor registrations saw a robust sales growth of 11 per cent year-on-year to 88,722 units in July. (ICE NEW DELHI)

Fonte notizia: The Economic Times