Stock shortages loom for SA

ALTHOUGH there are certain green shoots appearing in the South African vehicle market, the recovery looks set to be hampered by global stock shortages.

According to automotive retail giant Motus, new vehicle stock is still not freely available in South Africa and the premium segment remains tough, mainly due to stock mix.

“Consumers have an appetite for new vehicles, especially in the entry level, crossover and SUV segments. We are seeing growth, but we have not been able to convert all the interest into sales due to global new vehicle stock shortages,” said Motus Retail chief executive Corné Venter.

Naamsa chief executive Mike Mabasa echoed this, adding that structural constraints in the economy and growing debt are not helping the market. “New vehicle sales in 2021 may be hampered by stock shortages of certain models in the coming months caused by Covid-19-induced manufacturing supply chain disruptions, such as the global shortage of semi-conductors, which are an important part of modern vehicles,” Mabasa said.

March saw an overall increase of 18% over February. The top three segments in the passenger car market were the entry-level segment with 6 641 units, crossovers with 5 565 units and SUVS with 4292 units. The light commercial market was dominated by the one-ton double cab segment with 5533 units, followed by the one-ton single cab segment with 3877 units.

April sales are expected to be further subdued by the number of public holidays, but Venter says the market is showing encouraging signs.