New vehicle sales were up 9.3 percent in July on the back of a 29 percent increase in sales of SUVs and strong private buyer demand according to the latest VFACTS data.
Official VFACTS data released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) showed strong growth in new vehicle sales over the last year, with 82,376 passenger cars, SUVs and commercial vehicles sold in July 2010, up 9.3 percent (or 7,043 vehicles) on the same month in 2009.
FCAI Chief Executive Andrew McKellar was surprised by the strong July new vehicle sales result, with new vehicle buyers usually avoiding purchases in the first month of the new financial year.
“This is a very solid result for July with the start of the new financial year usually resulting in slower sales,” he said.
“These figures provide further evidence that sales to private customers continue to increase strongly – recording a 20 per cent rise compared to this time last year,” Mr McKellar said.
Mr McKellar believes the increase in new vehicle sales in July can be partially attributed to flood of new vehicles released onto the Australian market in recent months, in particular SUVs.
“There is a proliferation of new models on the market at the moment that buyers are finding attractive, particularly in the SUV range,” he said.
The SUV segment was the strongest performer during July with an increase of 29 percent; followed by light commercials (up 13.7 percent) and then passenger cars with a 3.2 percent increase.
Toyota was the top selling marque in July with 17,250 sales; followed by Holden with 10,648, then Ford with 7,375 units. Mazda, with 7,374 sales, missed out on being in the top three by just one unit.
Year-to-date, 613,544 vehicles have been sold, an increase of 15.6 per cent compared to the same period in 2009.
