Kerry's motor sales shows signs of stabilising after rough few years
MOTOR dealers in Kerry should be fairly happy with business in 2011 with figures from the SIMI showing car sales in the county appear to have stabilised after suffering a massive slump in the early days of the recession.
Statistics from 2011 that have been compiled by the Society of the Irish Motor Industry show that 2,020 new cars were registered in Kerry in 2011.
While this represents a slight fall on the 2,347 new car registrations seen in 2010, shortly after the government scrappage scheme was first introduced, it shows a significant recovery for the sector compared with figures for 2007.
In 2007, as the Celtic Tiger began to fizzle out before experiencing an epic crash, 4,103 new cars were registered in Kerry. The following year as the extent of the collapse became more apparent as new car registrations in the county fell to 3,344.
By 2009, with the recession in full swing new car registrations in Kerry had plummeted to just 1,298 leading to mass panic in the local motor sector and a number of closures of high profile motor dealers in Kerry and across Munster.
The introduction of the scrappage scheme in November 2009 appears to have steadied the ship. The number of new registrations almost doubled in the year of its introduction and this continued into 2011.
While the number of new car registrations last year remains far below its peak level, 51 per cent lower than the 2007 figure, the latest SIMI statistics show the sector has experienced a significant recovery.
While the news is welcome it is important to strike a note of caution. SIMI has warned that the end of the government scrappage scheme and increases in VAT could cause another fall in car sales, though hopefully not as disastrous as that witnessed between 2007 and 2009.
For now at least Kerry's motor dealers, who are now in the middle of their busiest period of the year, can breathe at least a little easier.
