MUMBAI: The auto industry continued its double-digit growth run in June as higher demand for new offerings drove passenger vehicle sales, while strong goods movements helped new fleet addition in the commercial vehicle segment as well.Five of the top six carmakers posted a growth in excess of 20%, and the top six carmakers, which account for 90% of the passenger vehicle market, saw a cumulative sales growth of 43%.The passenger vehicle growth rose more than 30% to approximately 2.70-2.75 lakh units in June, which is the highest seen in the passenger vehicle category in the past 18-24 months, according to industry officials.The commercial vehicle sales too are estimated to have registered a growth of over 40%.However, one has to take into account that this growth is calculated on a low base of June 2017 which saw lower dispatches due to uncertainty over the GST issue. If one were to look at a month-onmonth volumes momentum, the estimated sale in June 2018 is still lower by 12-13% compared to May, when the industry had dispatched over 3 lakh vehicles.Market leader Maruti Suzuki continued to drive the Indian passenger vehicle market with sales growth of over 44%, helped by a sustained demand for its Baleno, Brezza and the new-gen Swift.Demand for the new Creta pushed Hyundai Motor India’s sales by 21%, while Nexon, the Amaze sedan and Yaris hatchback drove sales of Tata Motors , Honda Cars India and Toyota Kirloskar by 63%, 37% and 563%, respectively.Rakesh Srivastava, senior VP, sales and marketing at Hyundai Motor India, said, “The new products are leading the growth in the market place. The new Creta has done very well for us, and there’s a waiting period of 3-4 weeks for it. Plus, the product enhancement Elite and new-gen Verna have brought in incremental numbers.”Industry players said that this growth is likely to normalise in the coming months. While demand is still strong, there are some macro-economic headwinds such as fuel prices, interest rates and raw material prices which pose challenges to vehicle makers.“We have achieved triple-digit growth this month against June 2017 because of last year’s GST scenario, wherein we supplied as per market demand which was impacted due to implementation of GST. The real scenario of the June-July sales will become clear after Julyend compared with June-July 2017,” said N Raja, deputy MD, Toyota Kirloskar Motor.However, for commercial vehicle makers, despite the low base of last year, the volume momentum month-on-month has shown a spike.The commercial vehicle sales at Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra and VE Commercial Vehicles grew by 50%, 27% and 63%, respectively.Girish Wagh, president, commercial vehicle business unit at Tata Motors, said the company grew by 50% in June on the back of an economy showing an uptick due to improved industrial activity, robust private consumption, and government spending on infrastructure.On the two-wheeler front, Royal Enfield sustained its double digit growth with 18% higher dispatches at 72588 units, and even in international markets, it has started showing higher traction with a growth of 27% on a relatively modest base.