After the coronavirus pandemic dampened celebrations and consumption in prior years, Indian consumers are back in force both online and in stores, splurging over this festive season.
According to estimates from consultancy firm RedSeer, during the first sale of the festival season from September 22 to 30, sales on the online marketplaces Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc.-owned Flipkart increased 27% year over year to $5.7 billion. Traders predict that consumers will spend $30.2 billion ($2.5 trillion) at retail establishments.
Diwali, the festival of lights that falls on October 24 and is comparable to Christmas in the West, was celebrated this year in India for the first time without restrictions due to the virus. The return of shopping is increased consumption, which is the foundation of the economy.
During the nine-day "Navratri" season before Diwali, according to figures from the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations, new car sales increased 57% from a year earlier. Indicative of rural demand, two-wheeler sales in India increased 3.7% from 2019 levels. According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, sales of automobiles and sport utility vehicles increased 92% in September compared to the same month last year.
The largest carmaker in India, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd., reported a 20% increase in demand for its vehicles year over year, driven by its premium lineup. According to Maruti's Executive Director Shashank Srivastava, “The growth numbers have been uniform in both urban and rural centers," with increased interest rates doing little to dampen demand.