Strikes and load-shedding knocked a big hole in domestic and export sales of new vehicles in October, Mikel Mabasa, CEO of the Automotive Business Council, said on Tuesday.
Just as vehicle manufacturers and their components suppliers were getting over the after-effects of July’s riots, a three-week steel and engineering strike, allied to “acute” load-shedding, put paid to hopes of immediate production recovery, he said. Eskom’s inability to provide stable power was “of great concern impacting on the ability of the (motor) industry to plan and grow”.
Domestic new-vehicle sales of 41,035 in October were actually 6.1% better than the 38,694 of October 2020. Previous month-on-month improvements, however, were in double figures.
The Nedbank group’s economic unit says sales remain well below pre-Covid levels. “Passenger (vehicles) and light commercials, which together make up roughly 94% of total vehicle sales, remain 22.4% and 18% lower (respectively) than the three-year pre-Covid average.”
This October, car sales of 27,496 were 3.1% better than the previous October’s 26,681. After 10 months of 2021, aggregate car sales totalled 251,068 — 27.7% ahead of the 196,558 at the same stage in 2020. For cars and commercial vehicles combined, the market was 386,537 — 27.2% better than the previous 303,941.
WesBank marketing head Lebogang Gaoaketse says there is positive news to take from the numbers, mainly that consumer demand is outstripping supply. He says the industry should be reassured by monthly sales having topped 40,000 for three months running.
The one ray of hope to take from October’s sad export showing was that it was better than September’s. Then, shipments were 57% down on a year earlier. In October, the drop was “only” 30%. Nedbank said exports “bore the brunt” of reduced industry production caused by strikes and load-shedding.
The single biggest deficit was at Mercedes-Benz SA, which is still well short of full production capacity since launching a new C-Class midyear. Instead of the many thousands of cars the company usually exports every month, its October total was 664.
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