In this month’s Insight, we analyse the trends in new vehicle sales during October 2011.
Insights:
October marked the third successive month where 2011 sales have surpassed 2010 sales. Small car sales dominated during October with strong sales performance from Corolla and Golf.
- The resurgence in vehicle sales continued in October with a 5.3% increase on October 2010 sales. Year to date sales continue to edge closer to 2010 sales, now trailing by only 2.8%. If the strong sales of the last three months continue the industry is well placed to again exceed one million sales this year.
- The small vehicle category experienced 32% growth in sales in October 2011 from October 2010 (5,577 additional sales). This growth can be attributed to strong sales of Mazda3 (up 24.6%), Corolla (up 28.2%), Cruze (up 31.4%), i30 (up 29.2%) and Golf (up 168.5%).
- A 9% increase in New South Wales sales and a 13% increase in Queensland sales in October 2011 from October 2010 sales, drove the overall increase in national sales. These States sold an additional 4,207 vehicles, largely accounting for the Australia wide increase (4,271). Queensland is now the first State where 2011 year to date sales have surpassed 2010 for the same period.
- Commodore managed only 3,018 sales during October 2011 despite a 2012 model update and the bonus offering of the ‘Equipe’ model. This dropped Commodore to 5th place for the month and represents an 8.9% drop in sales compared to October 2010. Despite this, strong sales of the Cruze meant Holden still recorded a 43% increase in sales of locally produced vehicles in October 2011 compared to October 2010.
- Toyota Corolla was the number one selling vehicle again in October with 3,593 sales. Corolla’s second month as the highest selling vehicle means Corolla has managed to edge ahead of the locally manufactured Cruze in year to date sales (28,737 vs. 28,608). The release of the Cruze hatch in November 2011 should provide a boost to sales in the Cruze range, but it is unlikely either vehicle will reach higher sales than the category leading Mazda3 which has already sold 34,624 units in 2011.
- The Toyota Camry sold 41.6% more vehicles (801 units) in October 2011 than October 2010. This result demonstrates the class dominance of the Camry as ‘medium’ size vehicles only recorded a 2% increase. Sales of locally produced Toyotas were up 23.1% for the same period. Toyota’s growth in Camry, Corolla and Hilux sales helped Toyota to record 6% higher sales in October 2011 than October 2010.
- Volkswagen benefited from a ‘drive-away’ sale on the Golf as October 2011 sales were 37% above October 2010. Golf sales in October set a monthly model record for the second time this year. With 3,337 sales, the Golf was propelled from the 10th best-selling car in September to the 3rd best-selling car in October, its highest monthly rank on record. The Golf also jumped to the 9th best-selling car this year, after not featuring in the top 10 in September.
Top ten vehicle sales
October 2011
Sales growth by passenger/SUV classification
October 2011 growth (compared with October 2010)
Contacts
Melbourne
Stephen Longley
t: +61 3 9269 4136
e: slongley@ppbadvisory.com
Ben Verney
t: +61 3 9269 4118
e: bverney@ppbadvisory.com
Robert Ditrich
t: +61 3 9269 4223
e: rditrich@ppbadvisory.com
Sydney
Greg Quinn
t: +61 2 8116 3278
e: gquinn@ppbadvisory.com
Brisbane
Grant Sparks
t: +61 7 3222 6807
e: gsparks@ppbadvisory.com
David Leigh
t: +61 7 3222 6822
e: dleigh@ppbadvisory.com
Perth
Simon Theobald
t: +61 8 9216 7601
e: stheobald@ppbadvisory.com
Adelaide
Peter Macks
t: +61 8 8211 7800
e: pmacks@ppbsa.com.au
Auckland
David Webb
t: +64 9 3041 301
e: dwebb@ppbadvisory.com
Important: This information is not advice. Readers should not act solely on the basis of information contained in this document. We recommend that formal or independent advice be sought before acting in the areas covered herein.
Automotive statistics - Australian new vehicle sales
October 2011
Sales by state
October 2011
Year to date 2011
Sales by manufacturer
October 2011
Year to date 2011
Sales of locally manufactured vehicles
October 2011
Year to date 2011
Sales by passenger/SUV classification
October 2011
Year to date 2011
Sales by buyer type
October 2011
Year to date 2011
Sales by country of manufacture
October 2011
Year to date 2011
Sales by fuel type
October 2011
Year to date 2011
Top ten vehicle sales
October 2011
Year to date 2011
Sales growth by state
October 2011 growth (compared with October 2010)
Year to date 2011 (compared with year to date 2010)
Sales growth by manufacturer
October 2011 growth (compared with October 2010)
Year to date 2011 (compared with year to date 2010)
Sales growth of locally manufactured vehicles
October 2011 growth (compared with October 2010)
Year to date 2011 (compared with year to date 2010)
Sales growth by passenger/SUV classification
October 2011 growth (compared with October 2010)
Year to date 2011 (compared with year to date 2010)
Sales growth by buyer type
October 2011 growth (compared with October 2010)
Year to date 2011 (compared with year to date 2010)
Sales growth by country of manufacture
October 2011 growth (compared with October 2010)
Year to date 2011 (compared with year to date 2010)
Sales growth by fuel type*
October 2011 growth (compared with October 2010)
Year to date 2011 (compared with year to date 2010)
* Excludes 'Heavy Commercial' vehicles
^ The analysis excludes the electric fuel type given that electric sales represent less than 0.05% of all vehicle sales. October 2011 electric sales were 8 down from 70 recorded during 2010, while year to date electric sales are 43 down from 111 last year. Movements in actual data and growth rates less than 5% are not annotated in the above charts.
Source: Federal Chambers of Automotive Industries - VFACTS National Report
