Auto retail sales rise 26% in February on sustained demand

NEW DELHI: Automobile retail sales rose nearly 26% to 19.1 lakh units, reaching a record in Feb 2026, data released by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) showed.FADA stated that five of the six major segments of vehicles, including two-wheelers, three-wheelers, passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles and tractors, recorded their highest ever Feb sales, with construction equipment being the only segment which showed a 1.2% decline.FADA president CS Vigneshwar said Feb turned out to be a landmark month for the sector. “The strong performance during the Feb month indicates that the policy-led confidence in the market, particularly following GST 2.0, is now translating into sustained demand across multiple vehicle segments,” he said.Two-wheelers remained the largest segment, with retail sales of about 17 lakh units in Feb, up 25% from 13.6 lakh units last year, with growth seen in both urban and rural markets. Passenger vehicle sales also hit a record, as dealers reported sales of around 4 lakh units during Feb, up 26% from 3.1 lakh units last year, as rural markets grew over 34%, compared with about 21% in urban areas. SUVs drove demand across markets, as dealer inventory levels fell to around 27 to 29 days.Commercial vehicle sales rose 29% to one lakh units in Feb, supported by infrastructure activity and growth in logistics and e-commerce. Tractors recorded the fastest growth among all categories, as sales rose 36% to 89,418 units from 65,579 units, pointing to healthy rural demand.FADA further said dealers remain positive about near-term outlook, with most of them expecting sales to grow in March, helped by multiple festivals as well as financial year-end purchase of vehicles, improved rural income following good crop outcomes and better affordability post GST revisions.