Vehicle registrations rose 2% year-on-year in November thanks to continued demand

79,152Vehicle registrations rose 2% year-on-year last month, despite a high base thanks to continued consumer demand even after the end of the holiday season. According to data collected by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) from the VAHAN portal of the Ministry of Road, Transport & Highways (MoRTH), a whopping 3.3 million vehicles were registered last month, compared to 3.23 million units in November 2024. The growth rate would have been higher had it not been for the decline in two-wheeler registrations last month, which accounts for three-quarters of all vehicles sold in the local market.

While passenger car sales rose 19.7% last month; those of commercial vehicles and tractors increased by 19.94% and 56.55% respectively. Sales of two-wheelers fell by 3% in the month under review.

FADA President CS Vigneshwar said, “Traditionally, car sales decline in the month following the festival cycle; however, this year, the most festive registrations were completed in October ’25 itself, unlike November ’24, when Deepawali and Dhanteras fell towards the end of October ’24, and vehicle registrations took place in November ’24, leading to a significant increase in volumes. Even with this shift, the sector ended November ’25 with a year-on-year growth of 2.14%, reaffirming the customer confidence and structural strength of the Indian automotive retail market.”

The GST cut, coupled with retail offers from dealers and car manufacturers, continued to attract customers to showrooms, allowing continued footfall beyond the festive period. Price cuts across all categories, which led to strong purchases in October, continued to support conversions in November, FADA said.

To be sure, two-wheeler registrations fell 3.1% last month, but largely due to strong buying during the October festive season. Delayed harvest payments and an uneven supply of preferred models also negatively impacted November sales. However, dealers continue to report strong walk-ins linked to VAT sentiment and healthy demand in the wedding season.

Passenger car registrations grew by 19.7%, helped by VAT benefits, wedding season demand, increased supply of high-expectation models and a continued push from compact SUVs. The inventory has been sharply reduced from 53-55 days to 44-46 days, Vigneshwar said. In the commercial vehicle segment, infrastructure activities, freight transport, tourist mobility, government procurement cycles and VAT reforms led to an increase in volumes, although fleet utilization remained uneven in certain markets.Vigneshwar said near-term auto sales will continue to be supported by improving rural sentiment and favorable macro indicators. The rabi season has started strongly with 39.3 million hectares of sowing, ahead of last year, thanks to robust soil moisture, better seed availability and supportive MSP signals. Wheat, pulses and oilseeds have shown strong area expansion, indicating improved income prospects for agriculture. At the same time, the IMD forecast of a colder than normal winter in the northern and central plains is expected to boost mobility needs and logistics activity.

“There are good signs of volume recovery in the FMCG, tractor and rural two-wheeler markets. These developments, along with GST 2.0 rate cuts and continued OEM dealer offers, are expected to support demand continuity till December,” he informed. The overall outlook for the automotive sector for the remainder of the financial year is positive.