Demand for new cars is continuing to recover after the highest-selling April on record and the sixth consecutive month of growth for the sector, according to the industry’s peak body.
In its latest market update, the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) said new vehicle sales were 92,347 in April 2021, compared with the significantly lower result of 38,926 in the corresponding month in 2020.
The result represents a 22 per cent increase on the April 2019 result of 75,550.
In the year to date, sales are up 30.7 per cent, with 355,995 sales in 2021 compared with 272,287 in 2020. Growth has been recorded in all segments, the FCAI said.
The passenger vehicle market is up by 8,906 vehicle sales (97.2 per cent) over the same month last year; the sports utility vehicle market is up by 31,154 vehicle sales (172.9 per cent), and the light commercial market is up by 12,278 vehicle sales (130.1 per cent).
FCAI chief executive Tony Weber said confidence in the new vehicle market was high and could be expected to continue to grow through the remainder of the year.
“New vehicles sales are a direct reflection of the performance of the broader economy in terms of consumer and business confidence,” Weber said.
“This time last year we were seeing significant impacts from COVID-19 with less customer activity and inquiries to dealerships.
“This sales trend is expected to continue as we enter the final two months of the financial year.”
Weber added that it was “pleasing to see” increase in sales for rental vehicles across all segments. Growth in rental fleets, he suggested, would be an important building block for the recovery of the tourism industry across the country.
However, he said supply chain constraints, including a shortage of semiconductors and shipping issues related to delays through the Suez Canal, were impacting the delivery of new vehicles to Australian customers.
“Every vehicle company is focused on solving the issues caused by these impacts and they are working with customers to keep them fully informed regarding supply issues and delivery dates,” Weber said.
“It is possible there is pent up market demand which may be reflected in sales figures in the second half of 2021 as solutions are found to these issues.”
Toyota was the market leader (20,208), followed by Mazda (10,052), Mitsubishi (7,513), Ford (7,146) and Hyundai (5,772).
The Ford Ranger was the top selling individual model (5,021) followed by the Toyota RAV4 (4506), Toyota Hi-Lux (4222), Toyota Landcruiser (3,177) and Mitsubishi Triton (2,458).
Featured image source: iStock/courtneyk
