NZ Market Posts Best Results Since 1984
Officials say the industry finally has recovered from a number of setbacks, including the 2008-2009 financial crisis and natural disasters in Thailand and Japan.
New Zealand’s new-vehicle sales soared 12.2% to 113,117 units in 2013, notching the market’s best result in 19 years as the economy bounced back and the industry finally put the 2011 Thai and Japanese natural disasters behind it.
Motor Industry Association CEO David Crawford says the final registration data for 2013 confirmed a strong finish to the end of a strong year for new-vehicle sales, with a significant increase of 12,322 units over 2012 and the highest annual volume since 1984.
“2013 will likely be remembered as the year in which the New Zealand economy finally left the starting line on the path to economic recovery from a number of setbacks, including the 2008-2009 financial crisis and restrictions on supply of new vehicles following 2011 floods in Thailand and the 2011 tsunami in Japan,” Crawford says in a statement.
December commercial-vehicle sales soared 45.8% year-on-year to a record 2,405 units, while passenger-vehicle sales of 6,371 units hit their highest monthly total since 1976, the year after the MIA began collating industry numbers.
Toyota topped the market for the 26th consecutive year with 23,705 units, including 16,172 cars and 7,533 CVs.
Ford was a distant second with 12,839 vehicles – 7,134 new cars and 5,705 CVs – ahead of Holden (9,074 and 2,648), Hyundai (7,179 and 583) and Mazda (5,823 and 1,278).
The Toyota Helix and Ford Ranger battled throughout the year for sales supremacy with Ranger topping the charts in December on 573 units to Hilux’s 458 units. However, the Helix retained its 32-year history as the country’s top-selling CV vehicle, with 5,041 units in 2013 to Ranger’s 4,924.
BMW topped the luxury-car segment with 1,907 units, ahead of Audi (1,820) and Mercedes-Benz (1,482).
Crawford says SUVs continue to dominate, accounting for 27% of the market with 30,478 units.
The Toyota Corolla was the year’s top-selling model with 5,993 units, ahead of Toyota Helix (5,041), Ford Ranger (4,924), Suzuki Swift (2,968), Holden Commodore (2,761) and Toyota Rav4 (2,739).
About the Author
You May Also Like
