Category Archives: Vehicle Sales

A total of 798 new vehicles were sold in January, which is 154 fewer than were sold in December, but represents a 12.7% y/y increase from the 708 new vehicles sold in January 2022. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, a total of 11,013 new vehicles were sold up to the end of January 2023, representing an increase of 16.6% from the 9,442 new vehicles sold over the same 12-month period a year ago. 2023 is off to a decent start with January’s new vehicle sales up for the 5th consecutive year.

468 New passenger vehicles were sold during January, a decrease of 7.1% m/m from the 504 sold in December, but 15.0% higher y/y from the 407 new passenger vehicles sold in January 2022. On a rolling 12-month basis, new passenger vehicle sales rose 24.2% y/y at the end of January. 12-month cumulative passenger vehicle sales continue to trend higher and are up by 77.0% from the pandemic low, trending at levels last seen in 2017.

Commercial vehicle sales declined to 330 units in January, representing a contraction of 26.3% m/m but is 9.6% higher year-on-year from the 301 new commercial vehicles sold in January 2022. During the month, 294 light commercial vehicles, 12 medium commercial vehicles, and 24 heavy commercial vehicles were sold. On a year-on-year basis, light commercial sales rose by 10.5% y/y, medium commercial vehicles grew by 140.0% y/y, and heavy and extra heavy vehicle sales declined by 20.0% y/y. All sub-categories, bar heavy- and extra heavy vehicles, have recorded growth on a twelve-month cumulative basis with light commercial vehicle sales increasing by 12.6% y/y, medium commercial vehicles sale rising by 9.5% y/y, while heavy commercial vehicle sales contracted by 12.3% y/y.

Both Toyota and Volkswagen started the new year strong and collectively sold more than half of the new passenger vehicles in January. Toyota captured the largest portion with 38.2% of the market share, followed by Volkswagen with 22.6%. Kia and Haval were the best of the rest, taking 8.8% and 5.1% of the market share, respectively. The other manufacturers consumed the remaining 25.2%.

Toyota also started the year off with a solid grip on the light commercial vehicle segment with a 53.4% market share. Ford came in second place with 8.5% of the market share, followed by Isuzu and Mahindra, with 6.8% each. Mercedes and Toyota collectively led the medium commercial vehicle market, each with a 33.3% market share during the month. Mercedes was also number one in the heavy and extra-heavy commercial vehicle segment, after taking 33.3% of the market share in January, followed by Scania with 16.7% of the market share during the month.

The Bottom Line  

New vehicle sales started the year off on a solid footing. January’s new vehicle sales are the strongest start to a new year since 2018 with just under 800 vehicles sold during the month. Both passenger and commercial segments grew year-on-year in January and sales in both categories continued to rise on a 12-month cumulative basis during the month. Commercial vehicle sales growth is mainly being driven by light- and medium commercial vehicle sales, while the ‘heavy’ segment recorded lower 12-month cumulative sales for a 5^th consecutive month.  

The 12-month cumulative new vehicle sales figure of 11,013 is trending at levels last seen in 2019. While this is still less than half the high of 22,664 recorded in April 2015, the relatively strong sales figure reported for January is encouraging, considering that vehicle prices and borrowing costs have risen considerably over the past twelve months.

A total of 952 new vehicles were sold in December, down 8.9% m/m from the 1,045 vehicles sold in November, but an increase of 29.7% y/y from the 734 vehicles sold in December 2021. In total, 10,925 new vehicles have been sold in 2022, up by 15.9% y/y from the 9,973 vehicles sold in 2021 and the highest annual number of new vehicles sold since 2019. Of the total vehicles sold during the year, 5,576 were passenger vehicles, 4,638 light commercial vehicles, and 711 medium and heavy commercial vehicles.

504 new passenger vehicles were sold during November, 27 fewer than the 531 sold a month earlier, but an increase of 39.2% y/y from the 362 vehicles sold in December 2021. Toyota was the best seller in this segment after accumulating 31.3% of the sales in December. Volkswagen came in second place with 15.5% of December’s new passenger vehicle sales, followed by Land Rover which saw 65 new vehicles sold – notably more than it has sold for the whole of 2021. New passenger vehicle sales grew by 24.4% y/y in 2022 when compared to the 4,484 new vehicles sold a year prior. With 5,576 new vehicles sold in 2022, the year ended with the highest annual number of passenger vehicles sold since 2016.

448 new commercial vehicles were sold in December, 66 fewer than in November but up by 20.4% y/y from the 372 vehicles sold in December last year. Light commercial vehicle sales dropped by 16.6% m/m to 373 but rose by 18.4% y/y. Medium commercial vehicle sales climbed for the sixth consecutive month, growing by 34.6% m/m to 35, the highest number of medium commercial vehicles sold in a single month since July 2019, and almost double the number sold in December 2021. Heavy commercial vehicle sales remained steady after 40 vehicles were sold, one fewer than last month and slightly below the 42 sold on average in 2022. In total, 4,638 light commercial vehicles were sold in 2022, up by 11.0% y/y from the 4,178 sold in 2021. The total number of medium commercial vehicles sold during the year grew by 3.9% y/y after 211 vehicles were sold in this segment in 2022. The total number of heavy commercial vehicles sold in 2022 however contracted by 11.0% y/y to 500.

Toyota was the best seller in the new passenger vehicle sector with 33.0% of the segment’s sales in 2022. This a remarkable feat considering that Toyota had production challenges on some of their key models due to flood damage at its plant in KwaZulu-Natal for an extended period during the year. Volkswagen was the runner-up with 20.9% of the market share, followed by Kia and Suzuki with 9.3% and 7.5% of the market share, respectively. The other manufacturers, including Hyundai and Haval, consumed the remaining 29.4%.

Toyota was also the top seller in the light commercial vehicle space with 48.1% of the segment’s sales in 2022, followed by Ford with 12.3% of the market share and Nissan with 11.4%. Hino was the best seller in the medium commercial vehicle segment with 30.3% of the segment’s sales in 2022, followed by Mercedes with 26.1% of the market share and Toyota with 16.1%. In the heavy and extra-heavy commercial vehicle market, Scania came out on top with 26.2% of the market share in 2022, followed by Volvo Trucks with 21.0% of the market share and Mercedes with 14.4%.

The Bottom Line  

The 952 vehicles sold in December was the highest number recorded for the month of December since 2015 and pushed the total annual vehicle sales number to pre-pandemic levels, and above the 10,000 level for the first time since 2019, as shown in the year-to-date chart at the beginning of this post. Both passenger and commercial vehicle sales recorded strong growth in 2022. Sales in the heavy commercial vehicle segment contracted in 2022, following a strong recovery in 2021, while the light and medium commercial vehicle segments reported healthy sales growth for the year. Overall, the recovery of new vehicle sales in 2022 was remarkable to see against a backdrop of rising interest rates, and despite being a challenging economic year. But new vehicle sales continue to trail the levels seen prior to 2019 as the chart below depicts.

1,045 new vehicles were sold in November, up 4.9% m/m from the 996 vehicles sold in October, and an increase of 38.4% y/y from the 755 vehicles sold in November 2021. Year-to-date, 9,973 new vehicles have been sold, of which 5,072 were passenger vehicles, 4,265 light commercial vehicles, and 636 medium and heavy commercial vehicles. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, a total of 10,707 new vehicles were sold at the end of November, representing a 13.9% y/y increase from the 9,397 sold over the comparable period a year ago.

A total of 531 new passenger vehicles were sold during November, 65 more than the 466 sold in October, and an increase of 29.4% y/y from the 379 vehicles sold in November last year. Toyota once again took the spoils in this segment after amassing 35.8% of the new passenger vehicle sales in November, followed by Volkswagen which accounted for 14.9% of the sales. Year-to-date, new passenger vehicle sales rose to 5,072, a 23.0% y/y jump from the 4,122 vehicles sold during the same period last year. On a 12-month cumulative basis, new passenger vehicle sales grew by 21.9% y/y to 5,434, a level last observed in 2018.

514 new commercial vehicles were sold in November, 16 fewer than in October but up by 36.7% y/y from the 376 commercial vehicles sold in November last year. Light commercial vehicle sales fell by 2.8% m/m to 447 but increased by 41.5% y/y when compared to the 317 sold a year ago. Medium commercial vehicle sales rose by 8.3% m/m to 26 and up by 44.4% y/y when compared to the 18 sold in November last year. Heavy commercial vehicle sales however declined by 10.9% m/m to 41 and down by 2.4% y/y from the 42 sold in November 2021. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, light commercial vehicle sales increased by 9.6% y/y to 4,580, while medium commercial vehicle sales fell by 2.0% y/y to 194 and heavy commercial vehicles decreased by 11.7% y/y to 499. November saw a new entrant in the heavy commercial vehicles category with JAC recording its first sale in this segment.

Toyota continues its dominance in the new passenger vehicle sector with 33.2% of the segment’s sales year-to-date, followed by Volkswagen with 21.4% of the market share. Kia and Suzuki are the best of the rest with 9.2%, and 7.7% of the market share while the other brands account for the remaining 28.5%.

On a year-to-date basis, Toyota also maintained its reign in the light commercial vehicle space with 47.4% of the segment’s sales year-to-date, followed by Ford with 12.2% of the market share and Nissan with 11.8%. Hino continued its dominance in the medium commercial vehicle segment with 30.7% of sales year-to-date while its closest competitor, Mercedes, accumulated 21.6% of the sales in this segment year-to-date.  In the heavy and extra-heavy commercial vehicle market, Scania retained the top spot with 25.2% of the market share, followed by Volvo Trucks with a 22.4% market share.

The Bottom Line  

New vehicle sales grew from last month and breached the 1,000 new vehicle sales mark for the fourth time this year. The 1,045 new vehicles sold in November was the highest number recorded for November since 2018. The year-to-date chart at the top of this report shows that new vehicle sales have surpassed the total number of new vehicles sold for the whole of last year and are well on track to beat the 10,000 annual total new vehicle sales mark which was last observed in 2019. Unless a very dismal sales figure is recorded in December, total sales for 2022 are expected to come in above the 10,415 total new vehicles sold in 2019.

November’s strong vehicle sales came on the back of solid passenger vehicle sales. The 531 new passenger vehicles sold in November was the highest monthly sales number recorded so far this year and brought the average monthly figures for the year to date to 461 and on par with the numbers last seen in 2018. New commercial vehicle sales, in contrast, saw a slight contraction in November but remained relatively strong, nonetheless. Despite the drop, the 514 new commercial vehicles sold in November came in above the 446 sold on average each month for the year to date. On a 12-month cumulative basis, 5,273 new vehicles were sold but continue to lag the pre-pandemic 2019 average of 6,300 with little support for a recovery soon.