Sales of passenger vehicles in Western Australia in the three months to March fell by 18.5 per cent from the prior corresponding period and sales of sport utility vehicles also fell, but demand for light commercial vehicles was on the rise.
From January 1 to March 31, 6,174 passenger vehicles were sold in WA, with 7,573 sold during the same time last year, according to the latest new vehicle sales report from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.
Passenger vehicles are classified as hatchbacks, sedans or wagons.
Sport utility vehicles (SUVs) recorded 10,344 sales for the year to date, a decrease from last year of 5.4 per cent, respectively.
Volvo was the stand-out performer for brands selling passenger vehicles and SUVs, with sales of 126 for the year to date, a rise of 65.8 per cent.
Light commercial vehicles was comfortably the best performing vehicle class, with sales of 5,814 to the end of March, an increase of 10.7 per cent.
Light commercial vehicles are primarily light buses and vans.
Overall in WA, sales for March were down 3.5 per cent to sit at 8,516, and for the year to date they were 23,072, a decline of 5.8 per cent.
The national figures recorded a more severe fall, with sales of 99,442 for March and 268,538 for the year.
This equated to a decrease of 7.1 per cent and 7.9 per cent, respectively.
