Four-wheel-drive vehicles boost Aussie sales

New-vehicle sales in Australia are showing signs of recovery after delivering their strongest monthly result since the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis.

There were 110,234 new units sold in June, a decrease of 6.4 per cent compared to the same month of 2019, according to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI).

Despite being down on 2019’s figures, it was a massive improvement on the previous three months when sales had fallen 17.9 per cent in March, 48.5 per cent in April and 35.3 per cent in May.

Toyota was the best-selling brand in June with 22,867 sales. The second most popular marque was Mazda with 9,420 sales, followed by Hyundai’s 7,737, Ford on 7,624 and Mitsubishi’s 7,419.

Four of the five top-selling vehicles were four-wheel-drive vehicles, with the Toyota Hilux, pictured, leading the way with 6,537 sales, up 21.1 per cent from June 2019.

Ford’s Ranger took second spot with 5,329 sales, a year-on-year increase of 9.9 per cent, followed by the Toyota Corolla’s 3,008 sales, down 4.1 per cent.

Rounding out the top five was the Toyota Landcruiser with 2,909 sales, 23.3 per cent more than in June 2019, and the Mitsubishi Triton with 2,721 sales for a climb of one per cent.

Tony Weber, chief executive of the FCAI, says the slight recovery in trade in June came about because of marques and dealers being proactive and stepping up marketing campaigns. 

He also attributed the monthly performance to the easing of Covid-19 restrictions, seasonality, and the extension of the federal government’s instant asset write-off scheme.

“Some states have seen the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, and this has increased floor traffic through dealerships,” he explains.

“In addition, June is traditionally a very strong month for new vehicle sales. The end-of-financial-year campaigns are well known, so it’s an excellent time for businesses and consumers to replace their vehicles.

“In June 2020, this has been reflected in strong results for business purchases, which have increased by 6.3 per cent on June 2019.”

Despite June’s “small bounce back” giving the industry some encouragement, it was still the 27th consecutive month of decreasing sales

“There’s no doubt that the new vehicle industry in Australia is still under high pressure,” says Weber. “We’re not out of the woods yet.”