Best year ever for imports

2017 was the best year ever for imports with 331,641 new and used passenger and commercial vehicles entering the country - a 10.2 per cent increase compared to the 300,976 that arrived in 2016. This was down to vehicle import numbers increasing in three out of the four import categories last year: Used car imports accumulated to a massive 171,543 for 2017 - the highest it has ever reached. This was an increase of 12.4 per cent on 2016's total of 152,676.  New light commercials also had a stellar year with a 26 per cent increase on 2016, from 29,852 to 37,614 units.  New passenger vehicle imports were also up with 115,019 units imported into the country in 2017 – an increase of 3.7 per cent on 2016 when 110,940 crossed the border.  Used light commercial vehicles was the only segment to decrease in numbers, with 7,465 units imported - a 0.6 per cent decrease year on year compared to 2016.  For the month of December, 13,097 used cars were imported, with Japan taking a 93.78 per cent of the monthly share - with 12,283 vehicles imported. Australia followed with 435 and a 3.32 per cent monthly share. Meanwhile, 150 vehicles were imported from Great Britain, with 1.15 per cent share of the monthly aggregation in used passenger vehicles.   Imports from Japan made the biggest gains in 2017 - monthly averages were some of the highest we had ever seen, with a huge 18,426 vehicles being imported back in March.