Delivery Dilemmas
Like many industries, the vehicle manufacturing industry is feeling the impact of global economic conditions. After a couple of years of record new car sales in Australia, YTD March 2009 sales are 19.2% below this time last year. That equates to a staggering 50,500 less vehicles than sold in the first three months of 2008.
As a consequence, many manufacturers have cut their global production levels resulting in long lead times for many makes and models. Locally, the Ford and Holden factories have been closed for the majority of 2009 resulting in delivery delays of up to 3 months.
Availability is also being affected because most dealerships have reduced their stock levels. In some cases, manufacturers are not releasing 2009 build vehicles until all 2008 stock is sold. Nissan and Honda have both adopted this strategy, with Honda not expected to import 2009 Accords until the middle of the year.
Further complicating this situation is the weak Australian dollar. As a result, many manufacturers are implementing price rises meaning that vehicles with large lead times may go up in price prior to delivery. For example, it is likely that the Honda Accord will undergo one, if not two, price rises prior to the arrival of the 2009 model. Nissan has also indicated that it will be implementing numerous increases this year. Most of these increases will apply to vehicles that are already on order.
Many other manufacturers are also rumored to be increasing prices this year. These include; Volkswagen, Holden, Ford, Subaru, Mitsubishi and Toyota.
“While this is not ideal, sgfleet is making every effort to effectively manage the situation,” says Marc Sibbald, Trade Operations General Manager. “Longer delivery times mean that we are focusing our efforts on managing the termination profiles of our clients.”
For more information contact:
Carolyn Taylor
(02) 9494 1000
ctaylor@sgfleet.com
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