JUST one single car brand in the top ten saw growth in October, with Kia the odd one out, as the over regulation of the finance sector put the bite on the car industry, with new vehicle sales down 9.1 per cent.
According to Tony Weber, chief executive of the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI), new vehicles have now seen the nineteenth consecutive month of decreasing sales in the Australian market.
“Year to date sales of new motor vehicles in 2019 are almost 78,000 units lower than the same period in 2018,” he said.
“While the drought and other domestic conditions are impacting the market, our key concern is the effect over-regulation of the financial sector is having on new vehicle sales,” he added.
“The FCAI and our members have been concerned about the risk averse approach to lending in Australia for some time and see improved access to finance as a key to driving economic growth in 2020.”
Of particular interest, according to Mr Weber, is the fact that sales are down across all buyer types, with private sales down 5.2 per cent compared to October 2018, business sales down 8.2 per cent and government sales down 7.3 per cent.
Kia’s boost in year-on-year sales is thanks to the performance of the Cerato, which saw a 36.5 per cent increase, on the back of the popularity of an enhanced model range that includes the GT.
The Korean car maker locked up seventh position in the top ten, behind the Toyota HiLux (down 20.1 per cent), Ford Ranger, Hyundai i30 (up 8.2 per cent), Toyota RAV4 (up 34.8 per cent), the Corolla and the LandCruiser.
Rounding out the leading performers was the Mazda CX-5, Hyundai Tuscon and Nissan X-Trail. Total sales for the month numbered 82,456 vehicles, a decrease of 8,262 vehicles, will all sectors of the market down.
During the month, the sports utility market fell by 3 per cent compared to October 2018, while the passenger vehicle market was down 15.3 per cent, and the light commercial market decreased by 11 per cent.
In overall brand performance, Toyota remains the number one, ahead of Hyundai, Mazda, Kia and Ford.
