In this series, which we hope to bring to you on a regular basis, we’ll be detailing some of the key numbers and trends that we’re seeing in terms of dealer connections made through our site.
As this data is considered somewhat representative of broader industry activity, and serves as one of the more insightful leading indicators for potential car sales, we hope it will fulfil a few purposes for our broad audience. First, to document not just how we’re performing as business, but how dealers and the wider market stand to perform, so you don’t have to wait til that next set of official sales data.
Without further ado, here’s what happened over the last week.
Total new car enquiries
In the week ending Sunday, July 5, PriceMyCar recorded 873 dealer connections.
Now the third consecutive week where inbound queries for new cars have dropped, the EOFY rush has subsided and some concerns are beginning to emerge in the likes of Melbourne where accelerating COVID cases have resulted in another lockdown. Last week’s decrease in dealer connections was equivalent to 26.3%, taking the drop in dealer introductions to 48.4% since mid-June.
As noted, however, a large part of this is due to seasonality, with interest often peaking in the middle part of June where buyers still have time to take advantage of EOFY sales. Nonetheless, consumer sentiment is also down in the last few weeks, with uncertainty hanging over the nation’s economic recovery.
New car interest by brand
Unsurprisingly, most of the leading car brands recorded a sharp drop in interest last week, with just a handful of companies otherwise defying the trend – this includes Mitsubishi and Audi, where interest increased, or in the case of Nissan, remained robust.
Mazda, Kia and Toyota, often the most dependable brands in terms of weekly interest, were hardest hit. These brands all tend to be sought-after by value-conscious consumers as well, meaning the conclusion of EOFY sales were likely to see interest slide as it did.
Prospective New Car Buyer Numbers |
Jun 29 – Jul 5 |
Jun 22 – Jun 28 |
% Change in Enquiries |
75 |
114 |
-34.2% |
|
74 |
156 |
-52.6% |
|
73 |
116 |
-37.1% |
|
67 |
84 |
-20.2% |
|
56 |
52 |
7.7% |
|
56 |
67 |
-16.4% |
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