India's Truck sales shoot up 201% in December, rentals at 2-year high

CHENNAI, INDIA: Jan 14, 2010 -- Truck sales , a key indicator of goods movement, zoomed by an astronomical 201.1% in December 2009, though on a low base effect as compared with December 2008. The sales grew only 11.9% in the first three quarters. The figures, coupled with rising truck rentals which are at a twoyear high, indicate that the economy is on an uptick.

According to data released by the Indian Foundation for Transport Research and Training (IFTRT), though April-December truck sales rose by 11.9%, the normally weak offtake month of December belied all calculations by registering a 201.09% jump in the sales of tucks in the 5-49 tonne range and operating on intra-state , countersigned inter-state and on national permit routes.

The sales of light commercial vehicles (LCV) in the 5-7 .5 tonne capacity zoomed 151.21% at 3,516 units in December last compared to the same month in 2008, while intermediate commercial vehicles (ICV) in the 8-12 tonne capacity recorded a 288.35% growth. Medium commercial vehicle sales jumped 211.09%, while multi-axle vehicle (MAV) and multi-axle trailer sales recorded 531.64% and 1,244% growth, respectively.

What led to the phenomenal growth is an extremely low base effect with only 7,278 units sold in December 2008 (the lowest for the month in the last decade), double-digit growth in the manufacturing sector, and 10%-12 % extra cargo offering and consequent demand for fleet expansion provided by exports, S P Singh, a senior fellow at IFTRT, told TOI.

Also, with new emission norms coming into effect from April 1, truckers foresee an increase in prices and are, therefore, rushing for purchases. Source: The Economic Times