Vehicle sales surge 21% in the first quarter

The sale of new motor vehicles accumulates a high of 21% in the first quarter compared to the same period last year, according to the balance of the National Federation of Motor Vehicle Distribution (Fenabrave). In the first three months of the year, 878,817 units were issued, against 726,272 in the same period last year.

In the monthly comparison, there was growth of 33.4% in March compared to the same month of 2022. There was also an increase from February to March of 48.7%%. The total volume of vehicles licensed in March reached 365,012. In February, there were 245,393 units. In March last year, 273,549 vehicles were traded.

The president of Fenabrave, Andreta Jr, said that despite the percentage increase, the sector has not yet seen a recovery to the levels obtained until 2019, before the pandemic. According to him, the global high was boosted by the difference in working days in March (23 days) compared to February (18 days) and by the low result in sales in the first quarter of last year.

“We are facing a scenario, again, challenging for 2023, which features high household debt, increased defaults, in addition to high interest rates and credit selectivity on the part of financial institutions, which has been restricting consumer demand, that has been losing its purchasing power”, he said.

Segments

In the automobile and light commercial segment, 436,802 units were registered in the quarter, representing an increase of 16.6%. In March there were 186,583, 38.3% more than in the same month of 2022 and 55.7% more than in February.

The bus and truck group registered 38,824 units registered, 12.4% more than in the same period last year. In March there were 12,326 units, with an increase of 3.84% compared to March 2022. In comparison with February, the increase was 21.6%.