Gross GST collections rose 8.7% in April to ₹2.43 lakh crore, exceeding the ₹2.37 lakh crore collected in April last year.
According to industry estimates, car companies sold 445,417 cars, sedans and utility vehicles in the domestic market in April, a 25% increase over 356,113 units sold in the same month last year.
Digital transactions through the Unified Payments Interface rose 25% in the month from a year earlier, with the value at ₹29 lakh crore, up 21%.
Tallwinds continue
“The robust surge in GST collections underscores the fundamental resilience of the Indian consumption story,” said Saurabh Agarwal, tax partner, EY India.
April power consumption was 153.99 billion units, up 4.04% from a year earlier. Railway freight loading flatlined in April at 132 million tonnes (mt) compared with 133 mt in the year ago.
The strong growth shows the impact of the West Asia war has not yet filtered through the economy, which is facing high commercial cooking gas prices, input supply issues and tepid global demand.
“We continue to see tailwinds — from GST cuts, reduction in repo rates and raising of income tax ceiling — and have not seen any impact of the West Asia crisis on domestic demand so far,” said Partho Banerjee, senior executive officer, marketing and sales, Maruti Suzuki.
GST collections
The net GST mop-up was up 7.3% to ₹2.11 lakh crore. Experts expect GST collections to settle at lower levels going ahead.
“We should anticipate a stabilisation in the coming months, with collections likely seeing a sequential dip in both absolute and percentage terms as the market recalibrates,” Agarwal said.
The growth was led by a sharp 26% jump in import-linked GST levies, which stood at ₹57,580 crore. The collections from stable domestic consumption grew at a more moderate 4.3%.
“Notably, growth in import-led revenues continues to outpace domestic transactions, which could indicate some softness in consumption, possibly reflecting a moderation in discretionary spending amid ongoing geopolitical uncertainties,” said Pratik Jain, partner, Price Waterhouse & Co LLP.
Car sales
Market leader Maruti Suzuki reported its best-ever monthly sales in April. The company sold 187,704 passenger vehicles last month, up 35% over the year-ago period.
Tata Motors posted sales growth of 30.5% to 59,000 units, while that of Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) rose 7.6% to 56,331 units. Hyundai was fourth in the pecking order.
“We have opened the new financial year on a strong note, carrying forward the momentum built in recent months into April 2026,” said Tarun Garg, MD & CEO, Hyundai Motor India (HMIL).