Category Archives: Vehicle Sales

714 New vehicles were sold in December, down 18.4% m/m from the 875 vehicles sold in November, and a decrease of 2.2% y/y from the 730 new vehicles sold in December 2018. Year-to-date 10,401 vehicles have been sold, a 12.6% contraction from December last year and the lowest annual vehicle sales figure since 2009. Of the 10,401 new vehicles sold during the year, 4,550 were passenger vehicles, 5,101 were light commercial vehicles, and were 750 medium and heavy commercial vehicles.

A total of 314 new passenger vehicles were sold during December, representing a 9.5% m/m contraction, but a 1.3% y/y increase. 4,550 passenger vehicles were sold in 2019, a 10.7% decline from 2018 and lower annual sales than the preceding nine years. Passenger vehicle sales made up 43.7% of the total number of new vehicles sold during 2019, broadly in line with the trend over the last 5 years.

Commercial vehicle sales declined to 400 units in December, a 24.2% m/m, and 4.8% y/y contraction. During the month 335 light commercial vehicles, 21 medium commercial vehicles, and 44 heavy commercial vehicles were sold. On a year-on-year basis, light commercial sales have declined by 12.3%, medium commercial vehicles rose by 90.9%, and heavy and extra heavy vehicle sales rose 37.5% y/y. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, light commercial vehicle sales dropped 17.1% y/y, while medium commercial vehicle sales rose 9.0% y/y, and heavy commercial vehicle sales rose 17.5% y/y.

Volkswagen lead the market for new passenger vehicle sales in 2019, claiming 30.5% of the market, followed by Toyota with a 28.3% share. They were followed by Kia and Mercedes at 5.8% and 5.5% respectively, while the rest of the passenger vehicle market was shared by several other competitors.

Toyota remained the leader in the commercial vehicle space in 2019 with 57.3% market share, with Nissan in second place with a 12.4% share. Ford and Isuzu claimed 9.3% and 7.6% respectively of the number of new light commercial vehicles sold for the year. Hino lead the medium commercial vehicle category with 39.8% of sales while Scania was number one in the heavy and extra-heavy commercial vehicle segment with 35.5% of the market share during the year.

The Bottom Line

New vehicle sales figures were quite dismal in 2019 with the cumulative number of new vehicles sales for the year amounting to 10,401, a decline of 12.6% from the cumulative number of vehicles sold in 2018 and a 54.1% contraction from the peak, on a cumulative 12-month basis, of 22,664 new vehicle sales recorded in April 2015. We expect new vehicle sales to remain under pressure in 2020 as there is little sign that the economy will show any meaningful growth. December new vehicle sales have historically been low when compared to most other months, but 2019’s December figure was the lowest since 2008, showing just how badly the ongoing recession has impacted demand and investment.

A total of 875 new vehicles were sold in November, a 9.9% m/m decrease from the 971 vehicles sold in October. Year-to-date 9,687 new vehicles have been sold, of which 4,236 were passenger vehicles, 4,766 were light commercial vehicles, and 685 were medium and heavy commercial vehicles. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, new vehicle sales continued its downward trend. 10,417 new vehicles were sold over the last twelve months, a 13.2% contraction from the previous twelve months.

347 new passenger vehicles were sold in November, contracting by 2.3 % m/m and 14.3% y/y. Year-to-date new passenger vehicle sales rose to 4,236 units, down 11.5% when compared to the year-to-date figure recorded in November 2018. Twelve-month cumulative passenger vehicle sales fell 11.8% y/y as the number of passenger vehicles sold continued to decline.

A total of 528 new commercial vehicles were sold in November, decreasing by 14.3% m/m and 33.3% y/y. Of the 528 new commercial vehicles sold in November, 467 were classified as light commercial vehicles, 29 as medium commercial vehicles and 32 as heavy or extra heavy commercial vehicles. 440 heavy vehicles were sold year-to-date, the highest sales figure for the period since November 2016. On a twelve-month cumulative basis light commercial vehicle sales dropped 16.6% y/y, while medium commercial vehicle sales and heavy commercial vehicles rose 6.2% y/y and 8.4% y/y, respectively.  For the seventh consecutive month, there has been an increase in the sale of heavy commercial vehicles on a twelve-month cumulative year-on-year basis. The steady increase in this category indicates improved demand for durable goods by businesses.

Volkswagen continues to lead the passenger vehicle sales segment with 30.4% of the segment sales year-to-date. Toyota remained in second place with 28.9% of the market-share as at the end of November. Kia, Mercedes, Hyundai and Ford each command around 5% of the market in the passenger vehicles segment, leaving the remaining 20.0% of the market to other brands.

Toyota retained a strong year-to-date market share of 57.7% in the light commercial vehicle segment and remains the market leader in the segment. Nissan remains in second position in the segment with 12.6% of the market, while Ford makes up third place with 8.6% of the year-to-date sales. Hino leads the medium commercial vehicle segment with 38.4% of sales year-to-date, while Scania was number one in the heavy- and extra-heavy commercial vehicle segment with 37.0% of the market share year-to-date.

The Bottom Line

Vehicle sales remain under pressure, with the year-to-date new vehicle sales in 2019 currently below 2010 levels, and the total new vehicle sales for the last 12 months down 13.2% from the same period in 2018. Both new commercial and new passenger vehicle sales are at their lowest year-to-date levels since 2009. However there has been an improvement in the demand for new medium and heavy commercial vehicles in 2019. This improvement has come off a very low base, but it suggests that the sectors of the economy that rely on these categories of vehicles may have turned the corner or bottomed out. However, we continue to expect business and consumer confidence to remain low and thus expect subdued demand for new vehicles going forward.

A total of 971 new vehicles were sold in October, representing a 20.5% m/m increase from the 806 vehicles sold in September. Year-to-date, 8,812 new vehicles have been sold of which 3,889 were passenger vehicles, 4,299 were light commercial vehicles, and 624 were medium and heavy commercial vehicles. This is the highest number of new vehicles sold recorded over the last four months. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, new vehicle sales continued its downward trend. 10,739 new vehicles were sold over the last twelve months, a 9.1% contraction from the previous twelve months.

355 new passenger vehicles were sold in October, an increase of 10.9% m/m, but contracting by 12.1% y/y. Year-to-date new passenger vehicle sales rose to 3,889 units, down 11.2% when compared to the year-to-date figure recorded in October 2018. Twelve-month cumulative passenger vehicle sales fell 10.5% y/y as the number of passenger vehicles sold continued to decline.

A total of 616 new commercial vehicles were sold in October, increasing by 26.7% m/m and 21.3% y/y. Of the 616 new commercial vehicles sold in October, 536 were classified as light commercial vehicles, 25 as medium commercial vehicles and 55 as heavy or extra heavy commercial vehicles. 408  heavy vehicles were sold year-to-date, the highest sales figure for the period since October 2016. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, light commercial vehicle sales dropped 9.9% y/y, while medium commercial vehicle sales and heavy commercial vehicles rose 2.1% y/y and 13.3% y/y, respectively.  For the sixth consecutive month, there has been an increase in the sale of heavy commercial vehicles on a 12 month cumulative year-on-year basis. The steady increase in this category indicates improved demand for durable goods by businesses.

Volkswagen continues to lead the passenger vehicle sales segment with 30.4% of the segment sales year-to-date. Toyota remained in second place with 29.0% of the market-share as at the end of October. Kia, Mercedes, Hyundai and Ford each command around 5% of the market in the passenger vehicles segment, leaving the remaining 20.1% of the market to other brands.

Toyota retains a strong year-to-date market share of 58.7% and remains the market leader in the light commercial vehicle segment. Nissan remains in second position in the segment with 11.8% of the market, while Ford makes up third place with 8.9% of the year-to-date sales. Hino leads the medium commercial vehicle segment with 37.5% of sales year-to-date, while Scania was number one in the heavy- and extra-heavy commercial vehicle segment with 37.3% of the market share year-to-date.

The Bottom Line

Vehicle sales remain under pressure, with the year-to-date new vehicle sales in 2019 currently below 2010 levels, and the total new vehicle sales for the last 12 months down 9.1% from the same period in 2018. Both new commercial and new passenger vehicle sales are at their lowest year-to-date levels since 2009. However there has been an improvement in the demand for new medium and heavy commercial vehicles in 2019. Although this improvement has come off a very low base, it suggests that the sectors of the economy that rely on these categories of vehicles may have turned the corner. However, we continue to expect business and consumer confidence to remain low and thus expect subdued demand for new vehicles going forward.