Commercial vehicle manufacturer Ashok Leyland’s acyclical businesses like light commercial vehicle segment, aftermarkets, power solutions and defence have been growing significantly. The company reported its Q2 numbers while sharing an outlook for the auto market.
Commercial vehicle was the most hurt auto segment while two-wheelers and passenger car segment grew at a faster pace. Ashok Leyland officials said that their Medium and Heavy Commercial Vehicle (MHCV) volumes were up 8.5 times to 6,994 units in Q2 from the previous quarter.
The company is confident about light commercial vehicles sales increasing by year-end. Ashok Leyland’s exports in Q2 stood at 935 units from 298 units in the prior quarter. The company stated that sales volume is not strictly comparable with 2019 as pandemic had halted everything in Q1 for the whole industry. Domestic MHCV is projected to fall 25-30pc in FY2021 as a degrowth of 75pc was reported in Q1 and Q2. The company believes that the segment will see growth in next two quarters.
The company has reported a net loss of Rs1.47bn ($19.80mn) in the September quarter against a profit of Rs0.39bn in the previous year. Revenues were reported at Rs28.37bn in Q2, down by 28pc due to a decline is auto sales.
Revenues from aftermarket segment has been growing since May almost at 2019 levels. Also, power solutions and defence segment grew in Q2. The company’s MHCV segment accounted for 45pc of total revenues in Q2, while in the previous year it was around 57pc. The share of non-MHCV segment has accounted for 55pc in Q2.
($1=Rs74.21)