Aussie truck sales on the up

There was more favourable sales data about at the end of February, with one segment in particular leading the COVID chaos fightback…

Sales of new trucks and commercial vehicles are rising, with the latest Truck Industry Council (TIC) TMARK data showing that total new registrations were up by 10.9 per cent this year to the end of February, compared to the same two months last year.

It's promising news after what has been a tumultuous 12 months courtesy of the COVID-19 pandemic, and especially heartening considering that at this time last year, the full extent of the novel coronavirus was yet to be felt.

Some 2769 new trucks and commercial vehicles were registered in February, the figure up 13.1% over the same month last year, for a year-to-date total of 4767 vehicles.

Fierce competition

Market leader Isuzu continues its reign, the Japanese giant posting a 13.0% increase on the overall leaderboard, but arch rivals Hino and Fuso are making some impressive gains, the second and third place-getters up by 33.2% and 30.9% respectively.

But it's the light-duty segment that is doing the bulk of the heavy lifting, with a 35.5% hike for the month of February contributing to impressive 38.5% growth year to date – the figures no doubt spurred along by initiatives such as the Government's Instant Asset Write-Off scheme.

In contrast, the medium-duty market is down by 5.5% year-to-date, while the heavy-duty segment is up a little, by 2.5% year-to-date. The light-duty van segment was down slightly at the end of February, by 0.1%.

Here are the top five best-selling brands in each respective segment…

New overall truck and van registrations, year to date (with % change)

1. Isuzu, 1214, +13.0
2. Hino, 775, +33.2
3. Fuso, 547, +30.9
4. Kenworth, 275, +15.5
5. Mercedes-Benz, 246, +80.9
Total for February: 2769, +13.1
Year to date: 4767, +10.9

New heavy-duty truck registrations, year to date (with % change)

1. Kenworth, 275, +15.5
2. Volvo, 202, -9.0
3. Isuzu, 190, -6.4
4. Mercedes-Benz, 154, +75.0
5. Scania, 111, -25.5
Total for February: 805, +3.2%
Year to date: 1402, +2.5%

New medium-duty truck registrations, year to date (with % change)

1. Isuzu, 348, -5.9
2. Hino, 292, +7.0
3. Fuso, 152, +12.6
4. IVECO, 24, -25.0
5. UD Trucks, 18, +125.0
Total for February: 494, +4.0
Year to date: 860, -5.5

New light-duty truck registrations, year to date (with % change)

1. Isuzu, 676, +34.9
2. Hino, 423, +69.2
3. Fuso, 336, +48.7
4. Mercedes-Benz, 88, +91.3
5. FIAT, 73, +5.8
Total for February: 1011, +35.5
Year to date: 1740, +38.5

New light-duty van registrations, year to date (with % change)

1. Ford, 237, +53.9
2. Mercedes-Benz, 231, -27.4
3. Volkswagen, 137, +25.7
4. FIAT, 67, +28.8
5. IVECO, 54, +42.1
Total for February: 459, +2.7
Year to date: 765, -0.1