Chennai, Aug. 1: Rising interest rates, fuel prices, inflation and the shaky quarterly results finally seem to be catching on the resilient auto industry. The passenger vehicle segment, which has been weathering the market forces for the last few months, registered a subdued growth in sales during July. Market leader Maruti Suzuki could increase its domestic market sales by only 0.1 per cent as they rose to 52,839 units. The number two in the four-wheeler space, Hyundai Motor India, which till now had been making rapid grounds in the Indian markets too could manage only a 0.4 per cent growth in its domestic sales. Tata Motors, couldn't even hold on to its base market as its sales saw a 13.9 per cent decline over July 2007 with sales of 14,652 units. The companies have attributed the subdued sales to restricted finance availability, high interest rates, increased prices and product maturity in some segments. The focus of the four-wheeler market in testing domestic conditions has shifted to rapidly grow their export portfolio. Hyundai, which is the largest exporter in this segment, posted a 59.7 per cent year-on-year increase in its exports as the sales galloped to 21,086 units. The exports for Maruti increased by 11.1 per cent with sales of 5,632 units. The passenger car segment saw a price hike across the board last month. However, with various external factors like inflation and higher lending rates putting the sales under pressure, the companies, along with dealers, have been offering discounts on most of the car models in the major cities to sustain their current share in the domestic market. Analysts however, have cautioned that with the rising raw material and logistics cost, the auto sector would be pressed for margins and the balancing act of offering lower prices to sustain high demand would keep getting tougher for the auto majors. The two-wheeler industry, on the other hand seems to be thriving in adverse market conditions. Hero Honda, which recorded a 44 per cent growth in its profits for the first quarter, registered a 39.8 per cent year-on-year growth in its July sales with figures of 2,81,317 units. The figures for Bajaj Motors, however, were more subdued with a four per cent increase in its two-wheeler segment with sales of 1,69,971 units. TVS Motor, which had registered sluggish growth in the past few months, posted an encouraging 10 per cent growth.