The global shortage of semi conductor computer chips continues to wreak havoc on the global car industry and local vehicle sales. Manufacturing plants in the United States, India and Brazil have had no choice but to halt assembly lines, the New York Times reports.
From a local perspective, May’s disappointing vehicle sales statistics shone a light on tough trading conditions for dealers. Total dealer sales amounted to 38 344 units last month, up 7,6% on April but significantly less than the 43 428 sales in March.
“Although dealer sales have recovered nicely when we look back over the past 12 months, it has not been without its challenges,” CEO of Motus Retail and Rental SA, Corné Venter said.
“The continued stock shortages of new vehicles are a real issue and is of course driving up the demand for pre-owned vehicles”.
The knock-on effect is that high-quality pre-owned vehicle stock is increasingly difficult to come by and prices are very often well above market value. The tightening of Covid-19 restrictions is also expected to damper consumer enthusiasm,” concluded Venter.
