Calcutta, July 4: Hinduja group flagship Ashok Leyland is vying for a bigger pie of the medium and heavy commercial vehicle segment in the domestic market amid trends of recovery in demand in June.

The company has set its sights on achieving a 35 per cent market share in 2017-18 compared with a 33 per cent in 2016-17 but exports are likely to remain flat.

In a letter to shareholders, Dheeraj G Hinduja, chairman of Ashok Leyland, had said the company had gained market share even as the market remained flat in 2016-17.

In the medium and heavy-duty segment, Ashok Leyland recorded sales volume of 102,313 vehicles, registering a growth of 4 per cent and a market share of 33.8 per cent last fiscal.

"Last year, our market share was around 33 per cent and we are expecting to this to increase to 35 per cent this year," said Anuj Kathuria, president (global trucks), Ashok Leyland, on the sidelines of a company event today.

He added that the second largest commercial vehicle maker in India (after Tata Motors) was focussing on the northern and eastern markets and coupled with a BS IV compliant truck portfolio, sales were expected to improve in the second half of the fiscal.

Early trends are seen in July with total sales increasing 11 per cent over the previous year.

The growth was primarily driven by the light commercial vehicle, which rose 29 per cent, while medium and heavy commercial vehicles grew 6 per cent over the previous year. Kathuria said sales in the second quarter were expected to improve over the first quarter.

Speaking on exports, Kathuria said the company was developing its presence in GCC markets, SAARC countries, the Asean region and Africa. But exports this year is likely to remain flat, he said.

Market outlook

Hinduja in his note expressed confidence that the business environment in the country was set to improve. The government will spend on infrastructure such as roads, ports, waterways, airways and railways. This is expected to have a positive bearing on commercial vehicle sales with GST expected to ease logistics operations.

"In the medium term, we can expect acceleration of fleet renewals and road transport becoming more efficient," said Hinduja.