New vehicle sales in South Africa with regards to light, medium and heavy commercial vehicles ended 2012 on a high note with aggregate annual industry sales up from 175 986 in 2011 to 183 917. The number of light commercial vehicles and trucks and buses exported out of South Africa also grew from the previous year with 124 649 vehicles exported in comparison to 84 926 in 2011.

Aggregate annual industry sales by sector, over the past five years, were as follows:

Export sales figures below:

On the assumption that the South African economy will grow, in real terms, by around 3% in 2013 and, taking account of expected other domestic and international trends, the outlook for 2013 in terms of the commercial vehicle sector sales is summarised in the table below –

On balance, 2012 turned out to be a year of relatively solid growth in all commercial vehicle sectors. Industry trading conditions remained intensely competitive.