Our take on the latest Commercial registrations and activity (Mon 10 Aug 2020)
New light commercials up 5.6%pa
New medium commercials down 24%pa
New very heavy commercials down 15%pa
The key numbers...
- There were 3,871 new commercial vehicles registered in July 2020, up 2.8% (or 104) from July 2019.
- New commercial registrations showed robust growth in July, up 5.6%pa, although light commercials have been performing badly so far this year and are still down 30%pa in the year-to-date.
- Total purchases of road user charges were down 2.2%pa in July 2020 after a busy June when vehicle owners were making up for lockdowns.
New light commercial registrations
Annual running total, source: NZTA
...and our reaction
- Strength in light commercial registrations, which often double as a personal vehicle, highlights that many households are spending their savings on a new vehicle now that international travel is no longer an option.
- Resilience in the primary sector and a better than expected construction pipeline are the likely sources of light commercial vehicle demand.
- Post-lockdown, commercial registrations are holding up quite well all things considered. Although, as the economy weans itself off fiscal supports such as the wage subsidy, and a quiet summer of tourism awaits, we are wary of further economic hardship.
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