Automobiles trades in India have developed at a sluggish pace in the month of April 2012. As stated by industry authorities, the transactions have been affected owing to high petrol charge. This is not the only reason for the slow growth though. The price hike through car models on account of the upsurge in the excise duty in March 2012 is also responsible for snail paced sales growth in the Indian auto industry at present. Diesel driven cars however have been an important funder in the marginal growth witnessed in the Indian auto industry.
Petrol cars witness a significant decline in sales this year. On the contrary, diesel car sales raised high in April 2012. Mahindra & Mahindra, that has a car portfolio with the majority of products being powered by diesel, saw a development of 33 percent in its sales this month.
Maruti Suzuki, the largest carmaker in India has witnessed a growth of about 3.6 percent. It saw a dip of about 26 percent in its overall volume trading entry level segment entailing Alto, the A Star and the WagonR. These are not available as diesel engine versions. The Swift hatchback and the Swift DZire sedan offered by the same company are available in diesel engine versions and their sales eventually grew to about 43 percent and 35 percent individually.
This event has become a serious cause of concern among automakers in India and they are attempting to push petrol car sales. Among these carmakers, the most prominent ones include India's largest car manufacturer Maruti that is at present attracting consumers via offering discounts of ` 20,000 - `25,000 on its small cars including Alto and the Estillo and the WagonR. General Motors and Toyota Kirloskar Motors have also come up with similar strategies and are offering attractive maintenance and insurance offers on petrol cars.