Vfacts Decenmber 2010

[vztrt]

So we round out the year.

http://theage.drive.com.au/motor-new...104-19evt.html

Car sales slow in December
Toby Hagon
January 4, 2011 - 4:44PM

Demand for new vehicles softened in December but 2010 is still shaping up to be the third biggest year on record.

Vehicle sales figures to be released on Thursday are expected to show a December slowdown with some brands set to report big drops in sales compared with the same month for 2009.

Drive has seen confidential figures to be released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries that show brands such as Ford, Holden, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Honda and Subaru experienced a sales slump of between 6 and 24 per cent.

Mitsubishi and Ford were two brands understood to have been hit hard in a market that struggled to match the pace of what was a bumper end to 2009.
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There’s a strong possibility the overall sales for December 2010 could slump behind that of the corresponding period for 2009, although the year is on track for the third biggest result ever for new-car sales in Australia, with sales expected to peak at more than 1,030,000.

For the first nine months of the year new-car sales were up 25 per cent but the last three months of the year have seen the market growth slow, partly on the back of a strong end to 2009. October sales were up just 0.1 per cent, while November grew only 1.8 per cent.

The Holden Commodore continued its long-running streak as the best-selling car in the country, a mantle it’s held for 15 consecutive years.

However, on the back of various year-end incentives Toyota’s small cars – the Yaris and Corolla – enjoyed a big sales burst. The Corolla, again the top-selling small car by just edging out the Mazda3, was the best seller for December, selling almost 5000 cars.

Not all brands saw sales slide, however.

Hyundai’s impressive growth continued in December with sales jumping 45 per cent, putting the brand on track to experience sales growth of about one-third.

Toyota was again the top selling brand with modest sales growth but enough to surge it past 200,000 vehicles yet again.

Nissan was another brand that experienced growth on the back of the arrival of its new Micra city car.