Celebrations about reaching one million new vehicle sales for 2018 will be muted following November’s results
New vehicle sales reached 93,860, dropping by 7.4% compared with the same period in 2017, the latest VFacts figures show.
The overall market decline for the month was once again led by falling passenger car sales, at 29,250 or 20.8% lower in November 2018 compared to the corresponding month last year.
The flat conditions were also reflected in SUV sales, which fell by 1.9 % across the segment, which accounted for 42.6% of the market in November 2018 and 42.9% of the market year to date.
Light commercial vehicle sales grew marginally by 4.2% in November 2018 from November 2017, with the segment representing 22.3% of the market in November 2018 and 20.5% of the market year-to-date.
Year-to-date sales across the market are currently at 1,065,583, which is a marginal 1.9% decline from the same period in the record 2017 sales year.
Looking at the states and territories, Tasmania bucked the sales trend compared to November 2017, with a 2% increase.
The remaining states and territories all dropped, with New South Wales down 11.6%, Victoria dipping 7%, Queensland falling 2.6%, Western Australia losing 9%, South Australia retreating 2.4%, the ACT declining 7.8% and the Northern Territory slackening 6.2%.
The Toyota Hilux was the highest selling vehicle in November 2018 with sales of 4671, followed by the Ford Ranger (3469), the Toyota Corolla (2659), the Mitsubishi Triton (2404) and the Hyundai i30 (2378).
Toyota led the market in sales volume for November 2018 with 18.9% of the total market, followed by Mazda (9.7%), Hyundai (8.3%), Mitsubishi (7.3%) and Ford (6.0%).
Tony Weber, chief executive of the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, acknowledged the ongoing flat market conditions.
“The November 2018 sales reflect tougher conditions across the economy. However, it is encouraging that sales have once again passed the one million mark for 2018, with one more selling month to go.”
“The 1.9% fall in sales to same number during the 2017 record year is a modest outcome within a market where consumer preferences are rapidly shifting from passenger vehicles to SUVs” Weber says.
