Tuesday 2 March 2010

GENERAL MOTORS KEEPS STRONG MARKET POSITION


GMSA retails 3,884 units in February 2010
With Passenger vehicle sales of 1,639, together with light commercial vehicle sales of 2,061 and 184 heavy trucks delivered, GMSA maintained its position as the third largest vehicle manufacturer in South Africa during February. The company’s market share for the month at NAAMSA was 11.3 %.

GMSA is second largest seller on light commercial vehicles
The Corsa Utility maintained its stranglehold on the sub-1 Ton pick-up market with sales of 1,195 units at NAAMSA. The Corsa Utility has now dominated its sector for the 59th straight month. This was supported by the popular Isuzu KB range at 841 units, giving GMSA company total LCV sales for the month of 2,061 units.

VEHICLE SALES CONTINUE TO SHOW GROWTH POTENTIAL THROUGH FEBRUARY
Vehicle sales statistics for February indicate support for a slow but sustainable recovery in the motor industry in South Africa. Total vehicle sales for the month, including those that are not reported in detail, were 20,5% better than the same period in 2009 and 3.2% better than January 2010. On a year to date basis growth remains at 18% when compared to the same period in 2009.

Some key indicators in the market for the past month were:
•    A level of demand at the top end of expectations for the month with indications that dealer stock levels may have started coming under pressure.
•    Increase of fleet and rental units ahead of World Cup
•    While new vehicle finance applications were down 6% quarter on quarter, they showed an increase of 2% in February over January this year.
•    There is evidence of an increase in activity in the used vehicle market – a good precursor to an increase in demand in the new vehicle market if previous trends remain true.
•    The split in used vehicle sales versus new increased by 20% from January 2006 to date, but this ratio has now stabilised as buyers come back into the new vehicle market.
•    Leading analysts indicate that dealer profitability is recovering but remains below the records set in 2006 when the industry was in a high volume turnover phase.
•    Research conducted by Wesbank indicates an increase in dealer confidence levels with the three month outlook favouring an increase in sales while the 12 month outlook indicates a likely increase in sales to a position where the market might be described as “active”.

The Vehicle Market in February
“Whilst still too early to predict a sustained turnaround, the total sales of 39,287 units continues to display positive growth in the market, albeit at a low level with only 3.2% up on the January 2010 total sales recorded. However, on a year to date basis the market has experienced growth of 18%, over the same period in 2009.  This growth has largely been driven by the rental and fleet contribution, which were fully expected prior to the World Cup, but also not sustainable over the course of the year” says Malcolm Gauld, GMSA Vice President Sales & Marketing .

“It is still too early to determine what the overall 2010 market will amount to, but a growth estimate of 6-8 % for the year is a solid base on which the industry can work towards. Key factors in achieving this growth are affordability, as private consumers still remain in a distressed personal financial situation. On the positive side, vehicle repossessions are down indicating a higher level of responsibility and that personal debt is being managed better. What is really needed at this point is a further interest rate reduction that would not only demonstrate confidence to the private consumer, but would stimulate the market and keep this positive momentum going” concluded Gauld.

Specific highlights from the GMSA stable
•    GMSA sold 3,884 units for February 2010, with a share achievement of 11.3 % at NAAMSA - Thus maintaining 3rd position in the SA Motor industry
•    The total NAAMSA Passenger market increased by 21,4 % over February 2009 to 22,031 units. GMSA achieved 7,4 % share of the passenger market. Significant GMSA Passenger volume contributors for February 2010 : Chevrolet Cruze 298, Chevrolet Aveo 564 – moving into 7th on the top ten passenger list, Chevrolet Spark 195, Chevrolet Captiva 100 and Opel Corsa 354 units
•    NAAMSA Sales of new light commercial vehicles, bakkies and minibuses at 10,524 units during February, 2010 reflected an improvement of 1,206 units or 12,9% compared on the 9,318 units of the corresponding month last year. GMSA maintained its position as the second highest seller of light commercial vehicles during February 2010 with 19,6% share. Significant GMSA LCV volume contributors for February 2010 : Corsa Utility 1,195 and Isuzu 841 units. GMSA continues to retain its leadership of the sub one ton LCV segment for the 59th consecutive month and new continuous sales record for GMSA
•    GMSA sold 105 N-series and 79 F-series trucks


STORY FROM GENERAL MOTORS SOUTH AFRICA

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