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AMG Aficionado
New vehicle sales accelerate by 87 percent
March 15, 2007
By Roy Cokayne
New vehicle sales have risen by 87 percent in South Africa since 2003, catapulting the country into a select and elite group of nations including China.
WesBank chief executive Brian Riley said the only comparable period in the country's history was in 1980, when new vehicles sales grew by 30 percent, but that was because of the gold price at the time.
"Not only have we seen excellent growth internally but our export programmes have also continued on a steady upward trend," he told guests at the WesBank/SA Guild of Motoring Journalists Car of the Year function.
Riley predicted that total vehicle sales in 2007 would reach 770 000, an increase of 7
'At the beginning of 2006 no economist predicted a rise in interest rates'.8 percent.
WesBank's forecasts have tended to be more bullish than other industry analysts; it predicted 725 000 new vehicle sales in 2006, but the final figure was less than 715 000 units.
But Riley pointed out: "If one considers that at the beginning of 2006 no economist predicted a rise in interest rates, we ended up pretty close."
Riley said the consumer market would be flat or slightly down in 2007 and the top performer for the industry would be the medium to extra heavy commercial vehicles segment, with sales increasing 20 percent to 40 000 units.
He predicted light commercial car sales would grow 12 percent to 225 000 units and the passenger vehicle segment by 5 percent to 505 000 units.
"The changing dynamics of purchasing patterns, rather than any slowing down in the industry, leave us still confident of our 2006 prediction that the market will reach one million sales by 2010," he said
'We are still confident the market will reach one million sales by 2010'.
Riley said the current state of global oversupply meant local automakers had to produce quality products in the lowest possible cost environment.
He hoped the midterm review of the motor industry development programme would encourage manufacturers to continue investing an industry "that accounts for almost eight percent of the country's gross domestic product".
March 15, 2007
By Roy Cokayne
New vehicle sales have risen by 87 percent in South Africa since 2003, catapulting the country into a select and elite group of nations including China.
WesBank chief executive Brian Riley said the only comparable period in the country's history was in 1980, when new vehicles sales grew by 30 percent, but that was because of the gold price at the time.
"Not only have we seen excellent growth internally but our export programmes have also continued on a steady upward trend," he told guests at the WesBank/SA Guild of Motoring Journalists Car of the Year function.
Riley predicted that total vehicle sales in 2007 would reach 770 000, an increase of 7
'At the beginning of 2006 no economist predicted a rise in interest rates'.8 percent.
WesBank's forecasts have tended to be more bullish than other industry analysts; it predicted 725 000 new vehicle sales in 2006, but the final figure was less than 715 000 units.
But Riley pointed out: "If one considers that at the beginning of 2006 no economist predicted a rise in interest rates, we ended up pretty close."
Riley said the consumer market would be flat or slightly down in 2007 and the top performer for the industry would be the medium to extra heavy commercial vehicles segment, with sales increasing 20 percent to 40 000 units.
He predicted light commercial car sales would grow 12 percent to 225 000 units and the passenger vehicle segment by 5 percent to 505 000 units.
"The changing dynamics of purchasing patterns, rather than any slowing down in the industry, leave us still confident of our 2006 prediction that the market will reach one million sales by 2010," he said
'We are still confident the market will reach one million sales by 2010'.
Riley said the current state of global oversupply meant local automakers had to produce quality products in the lowest possible cost environment.
He hoped the midterm review of the motor industry development programme would encourage manufacturers to continue investing an industry "that accounts for almost eight percent of the country's gross domestic product".
