New car sales reach 11 944 – Windhoek Observer

The total number new cars sold from January to November total 11,944, marking it the most robust performance since the noteworthy figure of 12 224 recorded back in 2017.

This success is particularly striking given the prevailing economic challenges, including high interest rates, and rising inflation, Simonis Storm Securities said this week.

In December, the Bank of Namibia maintained the interest rate at 7.75 percent, providing a brief respite for consumers amidst ongoing economic pressures.

“However, projections suggest that the high-interest rate environment will likely continue to impact household debt management at least into the latter half of the next year, despite this temporary stability.”

Simonis said from January to October, there has been a marked improvement in the acquisition of household instalment credit, exhibiting an average growth rate of 4.2 percent.

This figure shows a significant increase compared to the same period in 2022, where the growth rate was a more subdued 0.9 percent Simultaneously, there has been a noticeable rise in business or corporate credit.

“This upward trend in corporate credit is closely aligned with the increase in commercial vehicle sales observed during the same period, suggesting a potential link between the escalation in corporate credit activities and the heightened number of commercial vehicle purchases.”

In November, the automotive market observed a reversal in its recent trend, with vehicle sales climbing by 12.4 percent year on year following a four-month period of decline. Additionally, the month on month sales registered a substantial increase of 27 percent, a notable recovery from the -12.5 percent month on month downturn seen in October. The total number of units sold in this month reached 1 171. The heavy commercial vehicles (HCV) sector faced a pronounced downturn, recording a steep 37.5 percent year on year.

The commercial vehicles category notably dominated the overall vehicle sales in November, contributing a significant 603 units to the total sales.