Despite import restrictions and a lack of dollars, Motorcycle sales increased 14.5% in 2023. In December, 32,902 were patented and the year ends with a total of almost 471,000 units shipped, according to the latest report from ACARA Motos, the dealers’ chamber.
Japanese Honda maintains its leadwith almost 105,000 sold, equal to 22.3% of the total market. In the industry it is believed that demand will decrease by 25% this yearand they expect a first semester “with very painful numbers” and a recovery for the second.
“It is still too early to make projections, and we need to see how many variables will be resolved, including whether it can be imported, whether new brands will come onto the market, whether dollar payments abroad will be normalized and what will happen to interest rates“, describes Hori Jack, director of ACARA.
That said, the ranking of best-selling brands is led by Honda. Behind them are Motomel (13.1% share), Corven (11%), Gilera and Zanella (10.5%), Bajaj and Keller (5.6%), Mondial (4.9%), Yamaha ( 3.4%) and Guerrero (1.7%). As for the models, the small displacement ones (110 and 125 cc) They are the cheapest and represent over 70% of the market.
The motorcycle, like other durable goods (appliances and cars), constitute a valuable refuge against inflation, the exchange rate and the lack of savings alternatives in hard currencies. But financing is key. “Taxes are very important, the ones subsidized by the banks or the ones from Ahora 12,” Jack says. The industry prefers to wait a few days to see if some unknowns will be clarified with the new government before developing more precise projections.
“The year 2023 behaved as expected. With the economic crisis, devaluation, high inflation and the maintenance of Ahora 12, the sale could be supported. Stocks made payment operations difficult and, with obstacles to imports, the product was disappearing. But the demand was the same”, describes Federico Hellemeyer, of the Corven group (formerly Iraola Group), which controls several brands, including Bajaj, Mondial and Kawasaki.
The truth is that motorcycle sales have exceeded projections considered at the beginning of 2023. At the end of 2022, the industry estimates to ship between 400 and 430,000 units, in the best case scenario. For this year They are content to sell between 350,000 and 400,000 motorcyclessince the priorities for the consumer are different. “We continue to be the best-producing and best-selling brand in the country, with 8 domestic models. Furthermore, for the 5th consecutive year, our Wave model is the best-selling on the market,” they boast at Honda.
Which is no small thing, given that almost 50 national and international brands compete on the local market: according to ACARA, in fact, the Honda Wave 110 leads the ranking of best-selling models by far: 51,163, almost 11% of the total. Behind them are the Motomel B110 and the Gilera SMASH (7.5%), the Corven Energy 110 from Corven (7%) and the Keller KN110-8 (5%).
With a lower market share we find the Zanella B110 (3.3%), Honda GLH 150 and Bajaj Rouser 200 (2.7%), Zanella B110 RT (2.6%), Motomel S2 150 and Honda 2%). September to March is considered the high season for selling motorcycles, as the climate is favorable for their use.
The motorcycle is gaining more and more presence as a means of transport and also as a work tool, especially for workers on delivery platforms and for the logistics area of companies.
Source: Clarin
