Luxury car sales lose speed in H1

Price Pressure

- SWARAJ BAGGONKAR

LUXURY CARMAKERS SAW retail sales drop to the worst since the Covid-19 pandemic in the first half of this year, as uncertain market conditions and price hikes dampened buyer enthusiasm.

The country's top three luxury automotive brands—Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi—reported a nearly unchanged total sales volume in the six months ended June, compared to the same period last year. Together, they clocked 18,915 units, a change of 0.4% year-on-year.

Speaking to FE, Santosh Iyer, managing director, Mercedes-Benz India, said: "Though this has been a good (June) quarter for us, our outlook for the year will still be a single-digit growth or flattish growth. The base effect (of last year) is huge for the second half."