The Onam season provided a significant boost to consumer and freight activity in Kerala during August, with two-wheeler sales recording strong growth and truck rentals holding firm across key trunk routes, according to the Shriram Mobility Bulletin. Two-wheeler sales in Kerala rose 19 per cent year-on-year, reflecting improved consumer sentiment during the festive season. However, four-wheeler sales declined 3.73 per cent month-on-month, though they remained 9.30 per cent higher compared with the same period last year. As Sudarshan Holla, Joint Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer, Commercial Vehicles, Shriram Finance, noted, "The onset of the festive season, led by Onam celebrations in Kerala, has boosted sentiment across the transportation sector. Freight activity remained robust, with truck rentals holding firm on major trunk routes. Consumer demand also strengthened, as evidenced by a notable surge in two-wheeler sales during the festive period."
Truck rentals remained stable across key trunk routes in August, supported by Onam festive-season demand, with the Delhi-Kolkata-Delhi route recording the highest annual increase of 15 per cent, followed by Bengaluru-Mumbai-Bengaluru and Kolkata-Guwahati-Kolkata routes rising 11 per cent each. On a month-on-month basis, Mumbai-Kolkata-Mumbai and Bengaluru-Mumbai-Bengaluru led gains at 2 per cent each, followed by Kolkata-Guwahati-Kolkata at 1.9 per cent and Delhi-Kolkata-Delhi at 1.7 per cent. Delhi-Mumbai-Delhi and Delhi-Chennai-Delhi routes remained unchanged sequentially. According to Shriram Mobility Bulletin, rentals increased year-on-year across all key routes tracked, pointing to sustained freight movement ahead of the festive season. However, continued weather-related disruptions impacted vehicular movement in some sectors, creating additional challenges for transportation companies.
Vehicle sales trends reflected broad-based sequential moderation in August, with motor cars and motorcycles/scooters each recording a 6 per cent sequential decline, while goods carrier sales fell 10 per cent. Commercial tractors and agricultural trailers experienced significant declines of 35 per cent each month-on-month, with agricultural tractor sales dropping 27 per cent. Despite the monthly moderation, most vehicle categories continued to register double-digit year-on-year growth. Three-wheeler goods vehicles led with a 43 per cent increase, followed by maxi cabs at 29 per cent and earth-moving equipment at 27 per cent. Motorcycles and scooters grew 20 per cent, goods carriers 18 per cent and motor cars 16 per cent year-on-year. In Kerala, a key market during the festive season, two-wheeler sales increased 17.90 per cent month-on-month and 19.09 per cent year-on-year, while four-wheeler sales declined 3.73 per cent sequentially but remained 9.30 per cent higher year-on-year.
Electric vehicle sales continued to remain firm on a year-on-year basis, even as categories moderated sequentially. According to Shriram Mobility Bulletin, e-three-wheeler sales surged 98 per cent year-on-year, e-two-wheelers grew 90 per cent and electric cars increased 87 per cent, underscoring sustained expansion of the electric mobility ecosystem. On a month-on-month basis, e-two-wheeler sales declined 10 per cent, e-three-wheelers fell 3 per cent and electric car sales dropped 13 per cent. The strong annual growth across EV categories indicates that the underlying shift towards electric mobility remains intact despite short-term monthly fluctuations.
Fuel consumption presented a mixed picture in August, with petrol consumption rising 1 per cent month-on-month while diesel consumption declined 13 per cent. On a year-on-year basis, petrol consumption increased 7.9 per cent and diesel consumption rose 6.4 per cent. FASTag collections also edged higher sequentially, with transaction volumes increasing 1 per cent and collection value rising 0.6 per cent month-on-month, though year-on-year collection volumes were lower by 5 per cent. Holla noted that transporters are engaging with government authorities to seek relief from the upcoming restriction on BS-IV trucks entering the NCR, scheduled to take effect from November 1. The bulletin confirms that across the country, truck rentals remained higher on a year-on-year basis across all major trunk routes in August, supported by festive demand despite weather-related disruptions affecting vehicular movement in some regions.
