India’s retail car sales hit April high, but Mideast crisis clouds outlook

Hyundai Motor India

05/05/2026 05:05

May 5 (Reuters) - India's retail car sales rose in April, an auto dealers' body said on Tuesday, although the Middle East crisis and its impact on fuel prices could hurt demand going into the summer months.

Passenger vehicle sales rose 12.2% year-on-year to 407,355 units, a record for April, helped by a boost from last September's rate cuts, easier financing conditions and strong demand from smaller towns and rural areas, the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations said

Overall vehicle retail sales climbed 12.9% to 2.6 million units, also an all-time high for April, with five out of six segments posting record volumes

Dealers warned that uncertainty stemming from the Middle East could weigh on sentiment if higher crude prices spill over into fuel costs, and also flagged risk from heatwaves and supply constraints

Indian state fuel ​retailers have raised prices of liquefied petroleum gas for industrial customers and jet fuel sold to ​foreign carriers, but there ​has been no increase in retail prices ‌of ⁠gasoline, gasoil, LPG or jet fuel for Indian carriers

For April, rural car sales jumped 20.4%, nearly three times faster than urban growth of 7.1%, supported by a revival in small cars

Inventory levels edged up to around 28 to 30 days, within what the association considers a "healthy range", though dealers urged manufacturers to go slow on dispatches as demand typically softens in May and June

 (Reporting by Kashish Tandon in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)

 ((Kashish.Tandon@thomsonreuters.com; 8800437922;))