Passenger and commercial vehicle sales up: IJG report
• By Confidente Reporter
THE upward movement in interest rates has presented consumers with difficulties in obtaining loans, specifically car loans that typically involve a rate of prime plus two percentage points, which implies that current car loan rates stand at 13.5 percent on average, research firm Simonis Storm says.
Despite Simonis Storm’s assessment, the IJG Namibia’s 2023 vehicle sales reports indicate that passenger and commercial vehicle segments have been recording positive year-on-year growth for ten consecutive months, with rising interest rates seemingly doing little to dampen demand.
“In May, 982 new vehicles were sold, down 2.2 percent month-to-month from the 1 004 vehicles sold in April, but 27.7 percent more than in May 2022.
Year-to-date, 5 120 new vehicles have been sold, of which 2 579 were passenger vehicles, 2 245 light commercial vehicles, and 296 medium and heavy commercial vehicles. In comparison, 4 314 new vehicles were sold during the first five months of 2022 and 4 050 in 2021. On a twelve-month cumulative basis, 11 729 new vehicles were sold at the end of May, representing a 21.0 percent year-to-year increase from the 9 691 sold over the comparable period a year ago.
“Despite coming in somewhat softer in May, new vehicle sales remain relatively strong, evidenced by the 12-month cumulative figure continuing to tick up month after month and trending around early 2019 levels. Both passenger and commercial vehicle segments have been recording positive year-on-year growth for ten consecutive months, with rising interest rates seemingly doing little to dampen demand,” the report says.
Buoyed by the IJG’s report, Bank Windhoek Vehicle and Asset Finance (VAF) branch Pupkewitz Haval brand held a mini outdoor vehicle exhibition in Windhoek.
Bank Windhoek VAF Branch Manager for Corporate and Commercial Business, Riaan Gouws lauded the mini outdoor vehicle exhibition as a success.
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