Imports not a death blow… so far

There was some good news for the motor industry in July, with 182 registrations only slightly down – just 2.75% – on the same month last year. That’s a more reassuring figure than expected, given that the level of imports continues to rise.

The total number of cars sold in the month was 26,994, with light commercial and heavy goods vehicle sales looking a lot healthier, rising 12.4% and 23.28% respectively.

One interesting outtake from the statistics is that registrations of the all-electric Nissan Leaf hit 306 in July, more than 1% of the total, and higher than the total number of electric cars registered across the entire year not so very long ago. It is, of course, still early days but momentum in that segment clearly is building. The Society of the Irish Motor Industry also published its second quarterly report for 2018, and the biggest concern still is Brexit – not only because of the devaluation it occasioned in sterling, giving a fillip to the import sector, but also because of ongoing uncertainty about what happens next.

The average price of a new car in June 2018 was 1.9% lower than a year earlier, while buyers are paying 4.1% more for higher spec cars. The recalibration of the petrol/diesel ratio, with petrol staging a serious comeback after years of diesel dominance, has led to a slight increase in average emissions. There was mixed news on the running costs front, with insurance premiums down by 20.7% since July 2016, but petrol and diesel prices rose by 9.7% and 12.2% respectively since June of last year.

The report’s author, economist Jim Power, said: ‘Continued strong growth in used imports will continue to undermine new car sales. For 2018, the used import market is projected to grow by around 12% to reach 104,660. New car registrations in 2018 are forecast at around 125,000, which would represent a decline of 4.8% on 2017.’

No such worries at Peugeot, now the fastest-growing brand in the country. The 3008 SUV, the reigning Irish Car of the Year, allied to the success of the smaller 2008 and seven-seat 5008, led to a sales increase of a whopping 53% – and that’s before the awesome new 508 saloon arrives at the end of the year.