Attached is a copy of naamsa’s quarterly review of business conditions for the South African motor vehicle manufacturing industry, during the first quarter of 2023, as submitted to the Director-General, Department of Trade, Industry and Competition.
Industry vehicle sales, export, and import statistics for 2014 through 2022, together with current projections for 2023 and 2024, are reflected on the attachment to the submission.
KEY FEATURES: FIRST QUARTER 2023.
- New vehicle sales during the first quarter 2023 recorded an increase of 1,6% compared to the corresponding quarter 2022 and a gain of 0,2% compared to the fourth quarter 2022, reflecting a stressed business and consumer environment;
- New energy vehicle [NEV] sales by 14 industry brands increased by 18,8% from 1,401 units in the first quarter 2022 to 1,665 units in the first quarter 2023;
- First quarter 2023 aggregate industry employment as at 31st March 2023 totalled 33,392 reflecting a decline of 85 jobs compared to the 33,477-industry head count as at the end of December 2022;
- Average industry capacity utilisation levels during the first quarter 2023 continued to reflect the recovery to pre-pandemic levels but the ongoing global semi-conductor shortage impact OEMs differently while loadshedding and unplanned outages also impacted the operating conditions of the companies in the various segments;
- Aggregate capital expenditure by the major vehicle manufacturers in 2022 amounted to R7,1 billion, linked to new generation model investments;
- First quarter 2023 domestic new vehicle sales reflected a decline of 1,1% compared to the corresponding quarter 2022 with the passenger car segment declining by 7,5% but the light commercial vehicle segment increasing by 6,8%, the latter supported by new domestically manufactured model introductions;
- During the first quarter 2023 vehicle exports declined by 4,0% to 84,811 units compared to the 88,363 units exported in the corresponding quarter 2022 as the performance continued to be affected by the stagflationary shock amplified by the protracted Russia/Ukraine geopolitical conflict; and
- The naamsa CEOs Confidence Index, as an in-house leading business confidence indicator of current and future developments in the domestic automotive industry, reflects the sentiment expressed by the naamsa CEOs for the first quarter 2023 compared to the first quarter 2022 as well as automotive business conditions and the country’s economy in general for the next 6 months.
Ends.
