New Delhi, Jan 14 (IANS): Sale of passenger vehicles increased by 13.59 per cent in December 2020, according to data from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) released on Thursday.

A total of 2.53 lakh passenger vehicles were sold last month compared to over 2.22 lakh units during the same period of 2019.

Two-wheeler sales also improved 7.42 per cent on a year-on-year basis to 11.28 lakh units during the period under review.

However, the demand for three-wheelers is yet to revive and sales in December plunged nearly 59 per cent to 22,126 units, showed the SIAM data.

SIAM Director General Rajesh Menon said: "In the month of December 2020, the auto industry witnessed higher sales of passenger vehicles by 13.59 per cent and two wheelers by 7.42 per cent over a very low base of 2019."

SIAM President Kenichi Ayukawa noted that the Indian automobile industry appreciates the efforts of the government to balance safety of people and revival of economy from the negative effects of the pandemic.

"Initiatives such as the announcement of PLI scheme, keeping interest rates very low, targeted spending in rural areas and continued focus on building road infrastructure, will help in our recovery process," he said.