Year-to-date new vehicle sales growth of 18% over the first two months of 2009 has given an encouraging signal that the country is moving out of its first recession in 17 years, which is very good news for the business community, according to the chief executive of McCarthy, Brand Pretorius.
“The motor industry is regarded generally as an accurate barometer of business confidence and activity in the real economy, so the February new vehicle sales performance was heartening,” said Pretorius, whose company is one of the largest retail vehicle groups in South Africa.
He was commenting on the fact that total new vehicle sales of 39 312 units may have been only marginally better than sales in January this year, but it was a substantial improvement of 20.5% over the motor industry’s performance in February 2009.
He added that the biggest improvement came in the passenger car segment, which may have declined by 3.7% compared to January, but was a significant 27.5% up on the figure for February last year, which is an encouraging sign.
“Last month’s new car sales figure of 26 009 units provided further evidence that there is a definite upturn in the market, driven primarily by fleet purchases,” explained the McCarthy CEO. “Some pre-World Cup soccer buying by the car rental companies also boosted the market too. However, it was disappointing to see subdued demand from private buyers.
“With the exception of the medium commercial vehicle segment there were healthy increases in all the other commercial vehicle sectors, compared to sales in February last year,” added Pretorius.
“The strong year-to-date new vehicle sales growth has exceeded our expectation and we hope the current momentum continues in March,” added Brand Pretorius.
STORY COURTESY OF: Wilken Communication Management
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