New vehicle sales climb
New vehicle sales are continuing at breakneck speed in New Zealand, with August registration figures the highest in more than three decades.
The statistics for August show there were 12,677 registrations, up 13.3 per cent on August last year - and the highest since 1984. And year-to-date the market is up 7 per cent on 2015, and heading for a record year which may see sales pass 140,000 for the first time.
‘‘An already record year to date for new vehicle registrations just got stronger,’’ said Motor Industry Association chief execu- tive officer David Crawford.
‘‘Economic indicators remain the same as for recent months, with the strongest net immigration on record, a healthy tourism sector and a generally robust economy, all of which continues to drive sales of new vehicles year to date beyond that expected for 2016.’’
SUVs remain massively popular vehicles, accounting for 38 per cent of new registrations during the month, followed by passenger cars segments with 32 per cent and the light commercial segments with a 25 per cent share.
August saw 8896 passenger and SUV registrations, and 3781 com- mercial vehicle registrations. Toyota was the overall market leader with 2281 sales for an 18 per cent share, with Ford second on 12 per cent (1463 sales) and Holden third with 8 per cent (1051 units).
Toyota also held an easy lead in the passenger car and SUV segment with a 17 per cent share, well ahead of Mazda and Holden on 9 per cent each. But Ford held the lead in the commercial vehicle market with a 23 per cent share, followed by Toyota on 20 per cent and Holden on 7 per cent.
Toyota Corolla was the topselling individual passenger model with 535 sales for a 6 per cent share.