New Vehicle Sales – November 2022

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.

New Vehicle Sales – October 2022

A total of 996 new vehicles were sold in October, a 2.2% m/m contraction but an increase of 38.7% y/y from the 718 vehicles sold in October 2021. Year-to-date 8,928 new vehicles have been sold, of which 4,541 were passenger vehicles, 3,818 light commercial vehicles, and 569 medium and heavy commercial vehicles. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, a total of 10,417 new vehicles were sold at the end of October, representing an 11.5% y/y increase from the 9,343 sold over the comparable period a year ago.

466 new passenger vehicles were sold during the month, a 7.7% m/m contraction from the 505 sold in September, but a 29.4% y/y increase from the 360 vehicles sold in October 2021. Toyota’s sales accounted for 46.6% of the new passenger vehicles in October. On a 12-month cumulative basis, new passenger vehicle sales have increased by 19.6% y/y to 5,282, the highest level since March 2018. Year-to-date, new passenger vehicle sales rose to 4,541, an increase of 21.3% from the 3,743 vehicles sold during the same period last year.

530 new commercial vehicles were sold in October, representing an increase of 3.3% m/m and 48.5% y/y, the highest year-on-year growth rate since May 2021. The year-on-year increase was almost exclusively driven by an increase in light commercial vehicle sales, with medium- and heavy commercial vehicle sales roughly in line with last year. Light commercial vehicles sales rose by 55.9% y/y to 460, medium commercial vehicle sales rose by 9.1% y/y to 24, and heavy commercial vehicles sales increased by 15.0% y/y to 46. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, light commercial vehicle sales increased by 6.4% to 4,449, while medium commercial vehicle sales fell by 1.6% to 186 and heavy commercial vehicles decreased by 9.4% to 500.

Toyota continues to lead the new passenger vehicle sales with 32.9% of the segment sales year-to-date, followed by Volkswagen with 22.2% of the market share. The two top brands continue to maintain their large gap over the rest of the market, followed by Kia and Suzuki with 9.1% and 7.7% of the market, respectively, leaving the remaining 28.2% to other brands.

On a year-to-date basis, Toyota maintained its dominance in the light commercial vehicle space with 47.5% market share, followed by Nissan with 12.0% of the market. Hino continues to lead the medium commercial vehicle segment with 32.7% of sales year-to-date. In the heavy and extra-heavy commercial vehicle market, Scania retained its position as leader with 26.3% market share.

The Bottom Line

New vehicle sales declined marginally to 996, following August and September new vehicle sales that breached the 1,000 mark. The year-to-date chart at the top of this report shows that new vehicle sales have recovered well this year and are very much in line with the numbers last seen in 2019. October’s new passenger vehicle sales figure of 466 was marginally above the 454 average monthly figure witnessed so far this year. By comparison, the average monthly passenger vehicle sales figure in 2021 was 373. On a 12-month cumulative basis, new passenger vehicle sales of 5,282 are in line with the numbers seen in 2018. New commercial vehicle sales have similarly recovered, but October’s 12-month cumulative figure of 5,135 still lags the pre-pandemic 2019 average of 6,300. Still, monthly new commercial vehicle sales have averaged 439 this year, compared to 412 in 2021 and 367 in 2020, with October’s 530 sales well above this year’s monthly average.

New Vehicle Sales – September 2022

A total of 1,018 new vehicles were sold in September, which is 34 fewer than were sold in August, but represents a 32.7% y/y increase from the 767 new vehicles sold in September 2021. Year-to-date, a total of 7,932 new vehicles have been sold during the first three quarters of the year, of which 4,075 (or 51.4%) were passenger vehicles, 3,358 light commercial vehicles, and 499 medium and heavy commercial vehicles. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, a total of 10,139 new vehicles were sold up to the end of September 2022, representing an increase of 10.4% from the 9,186 new vehicles sold over the same period a year ago.

A total of 505 new passenger vehicles were sold in September, a 2.3% decrease from the 517 sold in August but a 32.9% increase compared to the same month last year. Toyota and Volkswagen’s sales accounted for 63.8% of the new passenger vehicles during the month. Year-to-date, new passenger vehicle sales are up 20.5% y/y. On a 12-month cumulative basis, sales have increased by 18.8% y/y to 5,176, the highest it has been since August 2018.

A total of 513 new commercial vehicles were sold in September, down 4.1% m/m from the 535 commercial vehicles sold in August but up 32.6% y/y when compared to the 387 commercial vehicles sold in September 2021. Light commercial vehicle sales continue to make up the bulk of the new commercial vehicle sales with 448 sold in September, followed by 44 heavy and extra heavy commercial vehicles and 21 medium commercial vehicles. On a year-on-year basis, light commercial sales rose 47.4% y/y, medium commercial vehicles rose 31.3% y/y, while heavy and extra heavy vehicle sales contracted by 34.3% y/y. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, light commercial vehicle sales rose by 4.4% y/y, while medium- and heavy and extra heavy commercial vehicle sales are down by 0.5% y/y and 8.3% y/y, respectively.

Toyota had a strong month and continues to retain its lead in the new passenger vehicle sales segment, accounting for 31.3% of the sales year-to-date, followed by Volkswagen with 23.0% market share. The two top brands have been maintaining their large gap over the rest of the market with Kia and Suzuki following with 9.0% and 7.9% of the market, respectively, leaving the remaining 28.7% of the market to other brands.

On a year-to-date basis, Toyota also maintained its dominance in the light commercial vehicle market with a 46.9% market share, with Nissan in second place with a 12.7% market share. Ford and Isuzu claimed 11.6% and 5.6% of the light commercial vehicle sales, respectively. Hino continues to lead the medium commercial vehicle segment with 27.0% of sales year-to-date. Scania retained its position as the leader in the heavy and extra-heavy commercial vehicle segment with 27.6% of the market share year-to-date.

The Bottom Line

In context, September’s new vehicle sales figure were in line with August sales, again breaching the 1,000 mark. On a 12-month cumulative basis, total new vehicle sales breached the 10,000 level for the first time since March 2020. New vehicle sales this year are trending around the levels seen in 2019. New passenger vehicle sales continue to tick up on a 12-month cumulative basis, while new commercial vehicle sales continue to hover around the 4,800 level, where it has been trending since April 2021.