New Zealand Market Posts Strong December, Tops 100,000 for 2012

New Zealand’s new-vehicle sales topped 100,000 units in 2012, marking just the third time in the last 22 years that barrier has been surpassed.

Motor Industry Assn. CEO Perry Kerr calls the 19.0% year-on-year jump to 100,794 units an outstanding result in an apparently depressed economy.

Sales rose 19.7% in December to 7,750 units.

The year’s passenger-vehicle sales rose 20.7% to 76,870 units, while commercial-vehicle deliveries climbed 16.0% to 23,924.

“This is only the third time since 1990 new-vehicle sales have broken the 100,000 mark,” Kerr says.

It’s the last annual report from Kerr, who is retiring next month and will be replaced by David Crawford, a former Ministry of Transport official and a previous executive director of the Petroleum Exploration Association of New Zealand.

Kerr has been CEO of the MIA since its inception in 1996.

Toyota’s domination of the New Zealand market goes back further than this, as it recorded its 25^th year atop the sales charts with a record 21,620 deliveries last year.

It led the car segment with 14,992 units and the CV market with 6,628.

Ford followed with 11,132 vehicles, ahead of Holden on 9,446 units.

The Toyota Corolla, with 5,324 deliveries, was the top-selling car, followed by the Suzuki Swift (3,321) and Holden Captiva (2,506).

The Toyota Hilux retained first place in the CV segment with 4,182 units, ahead of the Ford Ranger (2,815) and Nissan Navara (2,586).