Truck Industry Council foresees boost in second half as sales top five-year average
Pandemic-induced truck supply-chain disruption that has roiled the market recently can be expected to ease in the second half of the year, according to the Truck Industry Council (TIC)
The disruption is primarily focused on US and European supply, with Japan mostly escaping the blow.
“TIC continues to receive feedback from some truck manufacturers and importers that international part and vehicle supply shortages, due to the global Covid-19 pandemic, are impacting on their ability to build heavy-duty trucks in Australia and import heavy duty trucks from parent organisations in Europe and the USA, though this appears to be easing as we move through the halfway point of the year,” it says in a half-year market examination.
“Japanese truck imports appear to be less affected by these supply chain issues.
“Stellar heavy duty sales were recorded in June 2021, this marking the end of the Australian financial year and no doubt truck customers were keen to complete their HD truck purchases so that they could claim the federal government’s 100 per cent instant asset write-off.
“It is likely that July sales will be weak and that the June peak will be ‘normalised’ once the July numbers are counted, with the segment expected to stabilise at about 3 per cent growth above the five-year average.”
Read how the half-year figures stack up, here
TIC analysis half-way through the calendar year sees 2021 tracking some 13 per cent above the five-year average (FYA) of 2015-2019.
To the end of June it is also sitting above last year by 17 per cent.
Of course, the individual segments however continue to show significantly differing trends, with the light-duty segments carrying much of the growth load.
Light duty trucks and vans stand at 28 per cent above the FYA and the same above last year, at least to the end of May.
“Japanese light trucks and European vans appear to have few, or no, supply issues, and demand for home deliveries remains solid, leading to continued strong growth in this segment,” the TIC notes.
It’s steady work against the FYA in medium-duty sales, with only 1 per cent splitting the two.
However, the first half of the year is at 8 per cent on this time last year.
“This segment is dominated by Japanese sourced trucks that appear to have few, or no, supply issues,” TIC says.
“Weak sales in this segment indicate other market forces are at play and that Government Covid-19 financial incentives are not proving to be particularly effective in incentivising operators in this segment to purchase new medium duty trucks.
The story is better in heavy trucks, which are tracking 5 per cent above the FYA level, but 18 per cent above 2020 sales.
This is seen as being “helped by stellar June end of financial year sales.
“Some heavy truck brands continue to report supply chain shortages and this may be affecting heavy truck production both in Australia and overseas, possibly slowing heavy duty sales thus far in 2021.
“Whilst the Australian total heavy-truck and van market is showing significant sales growth over the five-year average, in reality, almost all growth continues to be in the light truck and light van segment.”