Two-wheeler sales in Jan 2022: Most manufacturers see YoY drop, except Suzuki

The new year 2022 doesn’t look to be very positive for the domestic two-wheeler industry as almost every vehicle manufacturer in the country has posted a year-on-year (YoY) de-growth in terms of sales made in January 2022. Most companies like - Hero, Honda, TVS, Bajaj, Suzuki and Royal Enfield - reported a YoY decline in sales, except for Suzuki Motorcycle India.

This is mostly due to the semiconductor shortage around the globe, which also haunts many of the domestic passenger vehicle manufacturers, including both two-wheeler and car manufacturers. Issues such as price hikes, spike in fuel prices, supply chain bottlenecks and the fear of the pandemic are also affecting the industry.

However, with India easing COVID-19 restrictions coupled with the Union Budget 2022, further suggests that the industry’s near-term scenario could change in the upcoming months.

Total sales of these 6 manufacturers stand at 10,87,496 units for January 2022, down 19.43 per cent as against 13,49,749 units sold in January last year. Yamaha has not revealed their sales yet.

In terms of domestic sales and exports in January 2022, the total two-wheeler sales dipped 16.09 per cent YoY. In January 2022, sales stood at 14,41,184 units, down from 17,17,621 units sold in January last year. However, in terms of MoM sales, the figures saw an 11.08 per cent increase from 12,97,442 units sold in December 2021.

On a YoY basis, Hero (3,80,476 units), Honda (3,54,209 units), Bajaj (3,32,430 units) and TVS (2,54,139 units) reported de-growth. Suzuki total sales increased 8.05 per cent to 70,092 units. MoM sales of Hero and Royal Enfield also dipped 3.62 per cent and 20.21 per cent, respectively.

Suzuki Motorcycle India is the only two-wheeler manufacturer in India to report a YoY sales growth in January 2022. The company, which had sold 57,004 units in January 2021, reported that its sales have increased by 6.35 per cent to 60,623 units last month. Its MoM sales also increased by 86.25 per cent from 32,549 units sold in December last year.

Hero MotoCorp, India's largest two-wheeler manufacturer, topped the list and managed to sell 3,58,660 units in January 2022, down 20.13 per cent from 4,49,037 units sold during the same period last year. Hero MotoCorp commands a 32.98 per cent share in this list. The company’s domestic MoM sales dropped 4.23 per cent from 3,74,485 units sold in December last year.

Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India saw a drop of 24.36 per cent in YoY sales to 3,15,196 units in January 2022 as against 4,16,716 units sold in January 2021. The Japanese company holds a 28.98 per cent share in the market, up from 21.58 per cent on a MoM basis from December 2021 when it sold 2,10,612 units.

TVS Motor and Bajaj Auto also saw a similar drop in their sales figures. In January 2022, TVS recorded its domestic sales drop to 18.23 per cent to 1,67,795 units as compared to 2,05,216 units in January 2021. However, MoM sales of TVS increased 14.33 per cent from 1,46,763 units sold in December 2021.

Bajaj, on the other hand, saw sales dip 13.92 per cent to 1,35,496 in January 2022 from 1,57,404 units sold in the same period last year. In terms of MoM sales, the company saw a 6.19 per cent increase from 1,27,593 units sold in December 2021.

Royal Enfield saw its sales dip 22.75 per cent to 49,726 units in January 2022 from 64,372 units sold in the same month last year. The company’s MoM sales saw 23.72 per cent de-growth over 65,187 units sold in December last year.