South Africa’s light commercial vehicle segment has seen a significant uptick in performance in March 2023 compared to the previous year’s results.
The sale of light commercial bakkies rose to 39 130 for March 2023 (an increase of 3244 units). Local light commercial vehicle sales increased to 15 529 units from 13 973 while exports increased slightly from 10 578 to 10 107 units.
Reports suggest that the increase of the repo rate and lending rate will further tax the consumer resulting in a smaller amount of disposable income key for the sale of new vehicles. Naamsa’s latest report highlights the impacts of local events such as the national shutdown that occurred less than two weeks ago.
Related: Suzuki experiences strong sales as dealer network is bolstered
“Coupled with the effects of interest hikes and the Human Rights Day holiday, the new vehicle sales and exports sales modest performance were also impacted by the National Shutdown on 20 March 2023, as many dealers opted to close shop and vehicle manufacturers operating in hotspot metros also halted production during the shutdown.”
Top five light commercial vehicle brands:
- Toyota (6 119 units)
- Ford (2 334 units)
- Isuzu (2 289 units)
- Nissan (1879 units)
- Mahindra (987 units)
Reports warn that a continuation of the current issues plaguing the economy will continue to persist and may worsen despite the market’s recent upswing and bolstering of vehicle production in South Africa.
Related: Naamsa December 2022 stats show a reassuring growth pace
