Auto parts makers are likely to report modest profits in the Jan-March quarter as they fight a slowdown in auto sales and high input costs.

Amtek Auto Ltd and Motherson Sumi Systems are predictable to post lower profits, while Cummins India may report a 10 percent growth in profit, down from 21.4 percent a year ago, a Reuters poll of analysts showed.

Automobile sales fell 5.3 percent in the Jan-March period as high interest rates hit demand for two-wheelers and heavy trucks. Costs of key raw material, like steel, went up by almost 15 percent in the Jan-March quarter, pressurising margins.

"Broadly, the sector is expected to deliver a mixed bag performance...following the slowdown in overall auto demand and input cost pressures", Angel Broking said in a research report. Firms like Motherson Sumi who sell to the United States will be hurt in the quarter, Aniket Mhatre, an analyst with Prabhudas Lilladher said. Analysts polled by Reuters expect the company's profit to reject almost 18 percent from a year ago.

Margins for auto part companies may be under pressure due to high input costs and the fact that no price increases have been passed on to the original tools manufacturers, Angel Broking said in its report.

But, the current turmoil in the sector, which has taken a toll on stock prices, may present a good buying opportunity, analysts said. Amtek shares have lost 31 percent since Jan. 1 while Cummins India shack 20 percent and Motherson Sumi 15 percent.

Angel Broking said that visible domestic industry growth and increase in outsourcing to India will aid enlarge of the auto supplementary industry going ahead.

Major global car makers such as Renault, Nissan, Volkswagen and General Motors are either increasing in India or setting up plants.