Car sales, exports still depressed
3 June 2009
South African new vehicles sales declined sharply in May, confirming households' aversion to debt and consumer worries over job security.
According to the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa), sales in all segments of the South African new vehicle market, as well as export sales, continued to register sharp falls in May compared with the same month last year.
Aggregate Naamsa new vehicle sales for May 2009 at 25 819 units reflected a substantial decline of 13 697 units or 34.7% compared to the 39 516 units sold during May 2008.
Factoring in aggregate vehicle sales reported by the AMH Group, the year-on-year decline amounted to 32.9%, Naamsa said on Tuesday.
Overall, out of the total Naamsa reported industry sales of 25 819 vehicles, 84.1% or 21 708 units represented dealer/retail sales, 2.2% sales to government, 7.8% represented sales to the car rental industry and 5.9% into corporate fleets.
Naamsa reported new car sales for May at 16 505 units reflecting a decline of 6 170 units or 27.2% compared to the 22 675 new cars sold during May 2008.
Factoring in aggregate new car sales reported by the AMH Group, the year-on-year year decline amounted to 6 592 units or a fall of 25.9%.
Trucks, buses, bakkies, minibuses
Sales of Naamsa new light commercial vehicles, bakkies and minibuses at 7 905 units during May 2009 reflected a massive decline of 6 074 units or 43.5% compared to the 13 979 units of the corresponding month last year.
Taking account of the light commercial vehicle sales reported by the AMH Group, the year-on-year decline amounted to 6 180 units or 41.6%, Naamsa noted.
Sales of vehicles in the medium and heavy truck segments of the industry also registered substantial falls.
The May 2009 sales at 528 units and 881 units, respectively, recorded a huge decline of 380 units or 41.9%, in the case of medium commercials, and 1 073 units or 54.9%, in the case of heavy trucks and buses - compared to the corresponding month last year.
"The continuing weakness in medium and heavy commercial vehicle sales reflected lower investment spending by the private sector," Naamsa said.
"Lower sales in the sector also reflected continuing difficulty experienced by truck operating businesses in obtaining finance," it added.
On a year-to-date basis, 2009 aggregate industry new vehicle sales at 157 141 units reflected a decline of 35.8% compared to the 244 670 vehicles sold during the corresponding five months last year.
Exports
Naamsa said the decline in exports of South African produced motor vehicles had continued during May 2009.
Export sales of 13 612 vehicles showed a decline of 9 575 vehicles or 41.3% compared to the 23 187 vehicles exported during May last year.
"Reduced demand in South Africa's major export markets (Eurozone, Japan and the United States) will translate into further declines in the number of vehicles exported by the industry during calendar 2009," Naamsa noted.
Naamsa said 2009 would represent "an extremely difficult year for the entire South African automotive industry".
It added that all sectors of the industry - vehicle retail, auto parts manufacturing and vehicle production - continued to experience severe and unprecedented viability challenges.
"An improvement in the automotive industry domestic operating environment would depend on a revival in consumer spending on the back of lower interest rates as well as on stimulatory government expenditure.
"While further consolidation in new vehicle sales volumes, at current levels, is likely to persist in the short-term, an improvement in domestic sales was anticipated towards the end of 2009," Naamsa said.
It added that any improvement in vehicle exports would depend on a recovery in global economic conditions and, in this regard, preliminary positive signs were emerging in the form of a return of confidence in international financial markets.
Sapa
