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SA car sales: 'Mixed results' for June 2017

<I>Image: iStock</I>
<I>Image: iStock</I>

Cape Town - New vehicle sales for June reflect a mixed picture of the industry, says the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa).

Commenting on the new vehicle sales statistics for June 2017, Naamsa said that domestic new vehicle sales had reflected a mixed picture with declines in sales of new cars and heavy commercial vehicles compared to "fairly solid gains in light commercial vehicle sales, as well as medium commercials".

Overall, domestic sales are reasonably encouraging with new vehicle exports also achieving a modest year-on-year improvement.

READ: SA's best-selling bakkies - June 2017

Increase year-on-year

Overall, June 2017 new vehicle sales of 45 369 units saw an increase of 418 units or 0.9% compared to 44 951 vehicles sold in June 2016.

Export sales at 31 631 vehicles, registered a gain of 429 units, an improvement of 1.4% compared to the 31 202 vehicles exported in June 2016.

Overall, out of the total reported industry sales of 45 369 vehicles, an estimated 38 213 units or 84.2% represented dealer sales, 9.8% represented sales to the vehicle rental industry, 3.1% to industry corporate fleets and 2.9% to government.

Drop in car sales

The June 2017 new car market at 28 639 units reflected a fall of 630 cars or a decline of 2.2% compared to the 29 269 new cars sold in June 2016. The car rental industry had accounted for an estimated 13.6% of new car sales in June, 2017.

The rental industry share was understated since it excluded data for a number of automotive companies.

Domestic sales of industry new light commercial vehicles, bakkies and minibuses at 14 278 units during June 2017 reflected a gain of 1 062 vehicles or an improvement of 8.0% compared to the 13 216 light commercial vehicles sold during the corresponding month in 2016.

Industry new vehicle exports at 31 631 units exported during June, 2017 reflected an increase of 429 units or a gain of 1.4% compared to the 31 202 vehicles exported in June 2016.

The momentum of vehicle exports should improve over the course of 2017, Naamsa said.

New vehicle sales dashboard:

Uncertain outlook

Naamsa said that the outlook for the second half of the year remains uncertain.

Political tensions and subdued economic growth prospects continues to impact negatively on business confidence and consumer sentiment.

The body believes that the challenges confronting South Africa are varied and complex.

Naamsa said: "Concerted steps were required by business, government and labour to create a more investor-friendly environment as a means of boosting growth.

"Domestic new vehicle sales were closely correlated with the overall performance of the economy and confidence levels.

"At this stage, domestic new vehicle sales for 2017 were likely to remain flat at best. On the other hand, vehicle exports over the balance of the year should benefit from expectations of continued improvement in global growth to around 3.6%."

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