NEW DELHI, Mar 8: Truck rentals remained lacklustre in February 2025 due to lower demand from the infrastructure sector, a monthly bulletin released by Sriram Finance said on Saturday.
“While select routes, such as Delhi-Kolkata-Delhi, which saw a 1.3% increase, and Bengaluru-Mumbai-Bengaluru, which rose by 1.6%, others like Delhi-Hyderabad-Delhi dropped by 1.1% on a month-on-month basis,” the bulletin said.
The bulletin said that dip in truck rentals was accompanied by a slowdown in vehicle sales across all segments, as buyers delayed purchases, awaiting new fiscal-year discounts in March-April.
“On a month-on-month basis sales of motor cars declined by 37%, agricultural trailers and tractors dropped by 30% and 31%, respectively. The sales in the commercial vehicles segment also took a hit, with goods carriers falling by 18%, three-wheelers (Goods) declining by 10%, and commercial tractors dropping by 17%,” it said.
The electric vehicle (EV) market continued to witness declining sales in February, with EV 2-wheeler sales plunging by 28% and EV Car sales tumbling by 34% on a month-on-month basis. The only outlier in the sector was E-rickshaws with Carts, which recorded an 11% growth, reflecting continued demand for last-mile connectivity solutions.
The sluggish demand across sectors was also reflected in fuel consumption patterns. The drop in petrol and diesel consumption in February coupled with flat FASTag transaction volumes and values indicate reduced movement of goods and passengers resulting in a slowdown in road transport and logistics activity.
Y S Chakravarti, Managing Director and CEO, Shriram Finance Ltd said,”The demand for trucks in February was lacklustre. The impact of the rate cut by RBI is yet to percolate down to borrowers totally as interest rate resets are underway. With March fiscal end coming, the expectation is that manufacturers across locations may move goods to commercial hubs, thus increasing trucking activity.
For two wheelers, with OBD II B Emission norms kicking in from April 1, manufacturers will likely clear all vehicle stocks that do not conform to the new regulations.”
(UNI)
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