Bajaj Auto expects the two-wheeler sales in India to reach peak levels of FY19 latest by the first quarter of FY26. PTI has quoted Bajaj Auto's Executive Director Rakesh Sharma saying that the two-wheeler sales in India would reach the peak levels of pre-Covid times latest by the first quarter of the next financial year. Sharma also reportedly said that the consumer sentiment in the Indian two-wheeler market is quite positive in both rural and urban areas. Buoyed by this positive consumer sentiment, Bajaj Auto is expecting the Indian two-wheeler market to grow around six to eight per cent this year.

Back in 2018-19, right before the Covid-19 pandemic hit the world, India's domestic two-wheeler sales were at 2.12 crore units. However, the pandemic hit the sales hard bringing it down to an ever-low level. Despite the recovery from that, in FY24, India's domestic two-wheeler sales were at 1.8 crore units, as revealed by the data published by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

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When asked when the industry could touch the peak sales achieved in 2018-19, Sharma reportedly said that if not in the fourth quarter of this financial year then by the first quarter of next year the industry should be able to breach the watermark of FY19. "Our expectation is that the two-wheeler market should grow around six-eight per cent this year," he reportedly added.

Speaking further, the top Bajaj Auto official also stated that one of the key factors driving the growth of two-wheeler sales in India is the bounce back of retail financing. "Things have been on an upswing in retail finance with 75 per cent of two-wheeler purchases are getting financed today as compared to 65 per cent around the same time last year," Sharma reportedly added.

Meanwhile, Bajaj Auto has increased the pricing of its two-wheeler earlier this month. The homegrown two and three-wheeler manufacturer has attributed the price hike move to factors like rising commodity prices, especially natural rubber. Speaking on that, Sharma reportedly said that the company has taken price hikes from the beginning of July 2024 in both domestic and international markets. "The impact of this is around two-three per cent," he said, further adding that currently it is at a manageable level.

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