The festive season of November brought some cheer back to the markets, that had been reeling under the brunt of Covid-19.
Diwali week saw marketplaces across Jharkhand bustling with customers, especially on Dhanteras, resulting in increased sale of several products ranging from automobiles to jewellery and from utensils to electrical appliances. However, compared to last year’s festive season, the overall trade was slightly sluggish.
Traders and retailers were satisfied with the unexpected good business given the prevailing impact of COVID-19 and expect more revival in the upcoming months.
During Dhanteras people did not shy away from buying gold, as seen from the crowded jewellery shops. Jewellers in major cities in the state did brisk business during Dhanteras. The global decline in gold prices on the day also helped boost the buying sentiment.
Similarly, four-wheeler segment saw many takers during the festive season. Abhishek Singh of Sudha Motors, a leading automobile showroom in Jharkhand said that additional/special schemes for ‘Corona warriors’ helped in overall sales of four-wheelers and majority of buyers were government employees. He expects the sale to improve further as huge discounts from manufacturers are expected in December.
Mayank Jain, Proprietor of Automobikes, a prominent two-wheeler automobile outlet in the state said that compared to October, sale has been good this month as Diwali and Dhanteras are bigger festival of the state but overall, the sale in the two-wheeler segment has been down compared to last year’s festive season.
“Two-wheeler segment is witnessing degrowth because a large category of buyers such as students and farmers that the industry majorly caters to is missing”, he said.
Like automobiles and jewellery shops, people in large numbers thronged electronics and utensil shops to complete their festive buy.
Traders are hoping that upcoming wedding season will help in further revival of business sentiments and will lead to increased sales across all the sectors.
