India Car Sales May Take a Year to Return to Pre-Pandemic Levels

  • Mahindra CEO says sales may hit 2019 levels by April next year
  • Production has resumed after shutdowns at height of outbreak

A customer browses a showroom in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. 

Photographer: Prashanth Vishwanathan/Bloomberg
Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. says India car sales will take almost another year to return to pre-pandemic levels after a resurgent outbreak shuttered auto plants and showrooms.

The rebound may happen faster as India is “starting to see a huge flurry of activities over the last week” as infections declineBloomberg Terminal and lockdowns ease, Mahindra Group Chief Executive Officer Anish Shah said in a Bloomberg Television interview Thursday. “But we have to wait and see whether that really takes off. If we go back to 2019 levels I think that would likely be starting around April next year.”