The National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (NAAMSA) has released new vehicle sales figures for August 2020.

The SA vehicle market remains under pressure with only a minor increase in sales over the previous month.

Compared with July 2020, 1 119 more vehicles were sold in August 2020. A total of 33 515 vehicles were sold in stark contrast to August 2019 where 45 484 vehicles were sold. The market appears to be showing serious strain as a result of Covid19. The expected rebound seen in Europe, where sales in July 2020 were the best of the entire year, has not manifested in our local market. Here are the headline sales numbers courtesy of NAAMSA.

New Car Sales Summary: August 2020

Aggregate new vehicle sales at 33 515 units down by 26.3%(-11 969 units) compared with August 2019

+3.3% (1 119 units) up on July 2020

New passenger car sales of 19 545 units down by 32.6% (-9 458 units) compared with August 2019

+1.9% (+640 units) up on July 2020

Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) sales of 11 336 units down by 19.3% (-2 719 units) compared with August 2019

+1.8% (213 units) up on July 2020

Exports of 23 337 units down by 46.9%% (-20 623 units) compared with August 2019

-5.5% (-1 369 units) down on July 2020

Top-Selling Car Brands in South Africa for August 2020

Toyota – 7 743 units

Volkswagen – 5 181 units

Ford – 2 810 units

Hyundai – 2 460 units

Nissan – 2 198 units

Sales outlook

New vehicle demand improved slightly compared to the performance of the previous two months as South Africa’s lockdown restrictions eased further to Level 2 in August 2020. However, activity in the new vehicle market is expected to remain low for the remainder of the year due to the uncertainties relating to the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic and as consumers and businesses continue to adapt to short-term budget pressures. Furthermore, not only will the economy have to contend with the consequences of the economic lockdown, it now has to deal with further rolling blackouts which comes at the worst possible time for the South African economy. Eskom announced that the heightened risk of load-shedding will haunt the South African economy for another year. All this point to an already hard-hit economy with no expectations for a quick recovery any time soon.

“We don’t anticipate that we will see any marked recovery any time soon. This is probably our new normal for a while,” explained Mark Dommisse, Chairperson of the National Automobile Dealers’ Association (NADA).

“Many of our potential buyers, be they businesses or members of the public, remain under massive financial pressure while also facing the unknown in terms of future business and employment prospects. Relatively few are in a position to commit to vehicle repayments over increasingly longer periods.

“We trust that the SA Reserve Bank keeps interest rates low for an extended period of a least two years to enable markets to recover. This could form one of the major building blocks for the government as they look to stimulate the economy. Inflation remains low, but there are noticeable increases in household expenses and fuel costs, all of which will have an inflationary impact in the short to medium term.

“As an industry, we realise that the difficult times will continue, and we must plan around the changed economic scenario. Motor traders in South Africa have been a resilient group when facing setbacks in the past and we remain optimistic in the longer term,” concluded Dommisse.