Car sales plunge 10% in March

Car sales in the Northern Marianas dropped more than 10 percent in March, after posting significant growth in the first two months of the year, officials figures from the Commonwealth Automotive Dealers Association disclosed.

CADA last week reported a 10.59 percent fall on automobile sales for March 2001 compared to sales figures tallied during the same month last year, selling only 76 units overall.

Automobiles wheeled out from the showrooms of Joeten Motors, Microl Corporation, Midway Motors and Triple “J” Motors consisted of 33 cars, 16 trucks, six vans and 21 sports utility vehicles.

In contrast, during the same period last year, the Commonwealth’s four automotive dealers sold 85 units.

In terms of auto manufacturers, Mazda and Suzuki experienced the biggest drop in sales as both brands failed to sell a single unit in the whole month.

Other automakers that registered negative sales growth last month include market leader Toyota Motors, Nissan Motors, Ford Motors, Honda Motors and Mitsubishi Motors.

Toyota, which continues to occupy a lion’s share of the auto market, sold only seven units less in March 2001 compared to the same period last year.

However, that figure was big enough to upset its sales stance by close to 18 percent. The Japanese automaker sold a total of only 32 automobiles last month.

In contrast, Korean automaker Hyundai Motors recorded a banner month in March 2001 as it sold six more cars during the period, up from just two a year ago. The rise easily translates to a 300 percent rise in sales.

Only one other automaker enjoyed positive growth last month, as Isuzu improved on its two-unit sale in March 2000 by 50 percent.

Slow auto sales for last month, instantly negate perceptions that local consumers are slowly easing their tight grip on their precious dollars.

The strong performance of the auto industry in January and February 2001, where sales shot up over 62 percent, led a number of observers to declare that spending power in the CNMI has become robust once more.

In the used cars department, a total of 70 units were sold last year compared to 52 in February, according to CADA. The month-by-month comparison translates to a 32 percent rise in used cars sales for March.