ECG — 2026-09-11
News from ECG
India is today a country with a population of 1.48 billion and an annual GDP growth rate of 6.5%. For comparison, China today has a population of 1.40 billion and an annual GDP growth rate of 4.4% as per the latest data from the IMF. Today India has a bigger population, and is growing faster than China. So, what does this mean for those involved in finished vehicle logistics?
India’s domestic sales of passenger cars are up 25.9% in the last quarter alone, while exports are up 8.8%. And all this is pushing up volume production in the country.
“Export growth in this segment was driven by good demand from Latin America though there is an impact on exports to Middle East. Rising demand from Europe & Japan has also contributed to the overall uptick,” states the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).
Exports of passenger and commercial vehicles from India are poised to surpass the million-unit mark in 2026, with a further boost expected from free trade agreements between the EU and India and the recent UK -India FTA. India has over 15 FTAs in addition to those signed with the UK and EU, with new FTAs drafted with the USA and Japan.
“India is increasingly moving from being primarily a domestic-demand manufacturing story to a dual domestic-and-export manufacturing hub,” says Vivek Sharma, Director at GlobalData India. Indeed, India exported a record 915k units in 2025, up 16% Y/Y - more importantly, export momentum has continued into 2026 with H1 LV exports reached 493k units, up 17%” says Sharma.
So, what does this mean for those involved in transporting new vehicles across India? “The growth in passenger vehicle exports is creating additional opportunities for the FVL sector. In our view, higher exports will lead to further growth in the overall FVL business, and we see this as a positive development for the industry,” says Mukesh Haritash, Director, Chetak Logistics.
With Europe focused on moving greater volume of units by rail, we asked leading players if rail is also a key focus point in India? “We are also entering rail. We expect our first train of 27 wagons to be running by the end of this year, and from there the plan is to add roughly two trains a year through to 2030,” says Mandeep Kaliraman, Director, Sandeep Logistics.
But most unique of all is the use of covered car carriers in India. While in Europe transport of new vehicles is done open-to-the-elements car carriers -in India the options whether they are hard or soft covered.
“The Indian Finished Vehicle Logistics industry is at an interesting point in its evolution. The market is growing, automotive production is expanding, exports are increasing and logistics infrastructure is improving. However, the next stage of growth will require the industry to move beyond simply adding capacity.
We believe the future of FVL in India will be shaped by professionalisation, technology, sustainability, driver welfare and better network optimisation,” says Vikrant Gupta, Director, Supreme Group.
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