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Johannesburg - New vehicle sales started the year on a positive note but, as expected, the year-on-year (y/y) growth was more subdued than the higher pace recorded during the last quarter of 2010.
Aggregate industry sales improved by 7 064 units or 18.6% y/y to 45 135 vehicles from 38 071 units in January last year, the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa) said on Wednesday.
It said medium and heavy commercial vehicle sales registered substantial gains, suggesting improved investment sentiment and better prospects for the economy.
Of the total sales of 38 934 vehicles, 81% or 31 552 units were by dealers, 9.8% to the car rental industry, 5.8% to the government and 3.4% to corporate fleets.
New car sales during January 2011 at 32 977 units reflected an improvement of 5 973 units or 22.1%, compared to the 27 004 new cars sold during January 2010.
Exports improved by 11.5% during January, with 10 186 locally-produced vehicles exported.
Naamsa said exports were expected to improve substantially from February as there was a revival in demand for South African-produced motor vehicles.
It also said the outlook for the year remained positive, and projected an improvement of 10% to 15% in volume terms for domestic sales. New commercial vehicle sales could improve by up to 15% on the back of the higher economic activity levels it anticipated, Naamsa said.
