Dealers of four-wheelers said only a few customers are approaching them. In the past, such schemes used to pull a large number of customers to auto showrooms.[break]
Almost all auto dealers in the country have announced handsome discounts on vehicles and even offered attractive gifts to potential buyers. However, dealers said those have failed to draw customers so far.
Hyundai -- the market leader of four-wheelers in Nepal -- has announced cash discount ranging from Rs 55,000 to Rs 200,000 for different models it has in the showroom. Along with the discount, it is also offering to bear insurance premium for a year and road tax for the current year. Bumper prize, as announced by the company includes two cars -- Accent and i20 Magna -- and three-day holiday package to Bangkok for 10 couples.
"Though the offer has stimulated inquiries, the response is not as overwhelming as we had expected to see," said Rupesh Sharma Bhatta, senior manager -- business development and planning at Laxmi Intercontinental -- the authorized distributor of Hyundai vehicles for Nepal.
Rising bank interest rates and hike in custom duty in 2010/11 are affecting automobile sales since the beginning of the last fiscal. “This festive season, the sales is even worse than that of the last festive season. This shows that that automobile market is getting worse," added Bhatta.
Arun Intercontinental -- the authorized distributor of Maruti Suzuki for Nepal -- has introduced an exciting offer to boost sales slump and strengthen its market position. The company has offered up to Rs 500,000 cash discount and Grand Vitara as the bumper prize.
"Sales and booking have definitely increased after we announced the scheme. But it´s no where near when compared to sales during last year´s festive season,” said Anuja Shrestha, assistant manager - sales of Arun Intercontinental.
Hit by the sales slump, automobile dealers have asked the government to do the needful in improving the market situation for automobiles - the highest revenue generating sector.
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