New car sales up up 6 per cent

New car sales continue to grow with May seeing a 6 per cent increase on the corresponding month last year. So far this year, 64,031 new cars have been sold, an increase of 12,481 on 2013.

Commenting on the results, Alan Nolan, Director General, said: “We expected May to slow a little, in advance of the new ‘142 plate’ in July. While the increase isn’t as large as previous months, demand has remained strong, attributable to a more affordable marketplace for motorists and better availability of retail finance options.”
“A bit like the property sector, which is seeing an increase in demand for new homes, many consumers now appear to be better placed financially to re-enter the new car market having been out of the buying cycle over the last number of years.”

“June is likely to be a quiet month with July being a crucial period for the Motor Industry. The second year of the new number plate, new car enquiries in dealerships are very strong at the moment and should translate into a busy July.”

Ford has taken top spot in the sales charts for combined car and van sales, a total of 6,282 cars were registered last month, up 336 units or a 5.7 percent increase on the same month last year.

There was a significantly higher increase in van and light commercial sales across the country for the month of May when compared with the same month last year, up 15.9 percent (1,359 vs 1,173 units).

Ford had the highest combined vehicle sales volume of 1,007 units to take the top slot followed by Toyota with 887 and Volkswagen with 871.

Commenting on the figures, Eddie Murphy, Chairman and Managing Director of Ford Ireland, said: “It is encouraging to see car and van sales continue to grow and Ford’s overall leadership role in the growing market.  There is no doubt that a lot of the sales are caused by pent up demand from motorists who put off upgrading their vehicle over the last number of years, however, a good proportion of sales is arising from the increased business confidence.  Certainly this is the case in relation to the van market increase which has always been a better indicator of confidence in the overall economy than car sales on their own”.