Chandigarh: Vehicle sales zoom on Dhanteras, gold glitters despite high rates
According to data from the Vahan portal of the central government, 517 vehicles were registered on Friday and Saturday, as reported by the Chandigarh Registration and Licensing Authority and the state transport authority.
Vehicle sales on the occasion of Dhanteras zoomed past previous years, despite the festival falling on a Saturday, traditionally considered inauspicious for vehicle purchases. The boost was partly fuelled by GST reforms, automobile dealers said.
According to data from the Vahan portal of the central government, 517 vehicles were registered on Friday and Saturday, as reported by the Chandigarh Registration and Licensing Authority and the state transport authority. This includes 321 non-transport two-wheelers, 149 light motor vehicles, and 17 electric vehicles (EVs). Registrations from Sunday are yet to be added, which are expected to raise the total further. Most vehicles get their registration done at the point-of-sale while a minority may choose to forego this to enroll for VIP numbers or if they want to get their vehicle registered in some other state.
Last year, 628 vehicles were registered on Dhanteras.
Chandigarh regional automobile dealers president Ranjeev Dahuja, who also owns a Tata dealership in Chandigarh, said, “While buying metals is considered auspicious on Dhanteras, people avoid buying cars on Saturday and this has carried over this year. However, over the whole weekend, we have sold more cars compared to last Dhanteras. This year, including Sunday, we will sell around 90 cars while last year we sold between 60 to 70 cars.”
He added that compact SUVs remained the best-selling segment this time while GST reforms have provided a slight push to sales. Some Tata Electric vehicles (EV) also found some takers this year.
Dahuja, who also owns a Mercedes Benz dealership in the city, revealed that the luxury car market isn’t influenced as much by festivals like Dhanteras. Even the recent GST reforms haven’t translated into as much of a spike in sales of luxury cars.
Nitin Mehan, who is also a senior member of the federation and owns Nexa and Maruti Arena showrooms in Chandigarh and Mohali, said that the GST cuts had caused some trouble for them. “Before the GST cuts were announced, Maruti had lowered the prices of some variants. Now, there is a bit of a gap between the supply and the demand, which has certainly increased recently. Delivery of vehicles is taking more time than usual, which is why we couldn’t deliver as many cars on Dhanteras this year.”
Overall, Mehan said they have done slightly better than last year, and expect total sales of around 1,200 cars this year.
Even stronger growth for two-wheeler segment
GST reforms have been more beneficial for two-wheelers as per Karan Gilhotra, who owns a Platinum Honda dealership in the city. As per the staff here, there has been a 25% increase in sales since the GST reforms. “Bikes which used to cost over ₹1 lakh now cost between ₹90,000 and ₹1 lakh now, so people are buying more. While Activas remain in demand, youngsters are also purchasing bikes with more powerful engines as petrol prices have been consistent for a while now.”
As gold prices surge, so does the demand
Gold sales are also seeing a surge despite its prices being at an all time high. For 10 grams of 24 karat gold, the price is ₹1.32 lakh while the rate of silver is ₹1.8 lakh per kg.
Vikas Garg, partner at PP Jewellers, said that the surge in gold prices is making people look at it as a safe investment. “It has been like Dhanteras for us ever since the end of Navratri. People are purchasing gold while there is no particular preference during the festive season and all items like bangles, tops and necklaces have been selling.”
Jewellers, who work with both gold and silver, say that silver is doing much better. Vinod Talwar, president of the Chandigarh Jewellers Association, said that while people had been coming for gold jewellery, they weren’t going for heavy bangles and are insisting on items such as studs. Silver, on the other hand, is selling well in all forms, he added.
