Automotive Industry and Automobile statistics overview

Broad segmentation of the Automotive industry

The automotive industry can be classified broadly into passenger vehicles and trucks. Passenger vehicles consist of cars and utility vehicles (see car industry). Trucks are also called commercial vehicles in Europe, the UK and India (see truck industry). Automobile statistics show that passenger vehicles have grown at a compound annual growth rate of 1.89 percent in the period 1999 to 2003. However, growth has been uneven during this period with the industry recording a peak growth of 5.89 percent in 1999. After peaking in 1999, the passenger vehicles segment of the automotive industry slowed down considerably in the following years to end up with a marginal growth of 0.71 percent in 2003, see figure 1. Purchase full report here. 

Trucks, which include light commercial vehicles and heavy-duty trucks, have grown at a compound annual growth rate of 4.33 percent between 1999 and 2003. Passenger vehicles have seen a year-on-year positive growth during this period.

Passenger vehicles did well in 1999 due to the booming technology markets in the US and parts of Asia, but slumped thereafter due to worldwide recession, saturation in the developed markets and the fall in employment growth. Passenger vehicle growth still remains in the positive zone and recorded a growth rate of 0.71 percent in 2003 owing to higher sales in the emerging markets and the UK. In 2003, the US market declined for the third year in succession.

Truck sales hit a high in 1999 and early 2000 due to an economic boom and transition to higher powered vehicles, but fell steeply in 2001 due to worldwide recession, see figure 2.

Truck sales came back strongly in 2002 to record a growth of 4.82 percent owing to growth in the emerging markets and Central and Eastern Europe, but declined marginally to 4.55 percent in 2003.

Automotive industry regional passenger vehicle production and sales

The US auto industry has seen a decline in production due to the closure of some plants and the overall decrease in demand. Production dropped from 12.6 million units in 1999 to 11.8 million units in 2003.

The emerging markets saw new production bases being created due to their relative cost advantage and naturally production shot up from 4.8 million units in 1999 to 7.6 million units in 2003, see figure 3. Higher demand led to production increases in Central and Eastern Europe. Volkswagen and Fiat, for example, added significant capacities during this period.

In the same period, production in Western Europe dropped due to decrease in demand. Production in the Europe auto industry increased from 14.78 million units in 1999 to 15.86 million units in 2001 and then marginally dropped to 15.39 million units in 2003.  The increase in Japanese production was fuelled by exports as domestic demand stagnated.

The decline in UK production is due to the closure of the General Motors plant at Luton, Ford shutting down its vehicle production at Dagenham and BMW’s break up of Rover Group in 2000. The competitiveness of UK producers was eroded with the strengthening of the pound against the euro. In addition, the UK has suffered from significant over capacity and as a result, major producers pulled out from the region, pushing production in the UK downwards to 1.49 million units in 2001 - a stunning reversal after continuously growing from 1983 to 1999.

The US auto industry recorded its highest ever car sales in 2000.  Since then, fierce competition from the Asian automotive industry, outdated designs and a general decrease in demand have pushed sales down from 17.3 million units in 2000 to 16.1 million units in 2003.

Automotive industry regional truck production and sales

In the US truck industry, the production of trucks dropped from 0.43 million units in 1999 to 0.25 million units in 2003 due to the onset of the recession in the latter part of 2000. 

In the Europe auto industry, truck production declined after peaking in 2000. Truck production did recover in 2003 to 2.39 million units, but volumes did not cross the high of 2.47 million units witnessed in 2000. In the UK auto industry, production stagnated from 2001 to 2003. Production in the emerging markets has risen consistently with annual growth for 2003 touching 13.60 percent, see figure 5. Japan saw production increases in both 2002 and 2003 due to better overseas demand.

The higher sales in the emerging markets of the automotive industry are due to increased investments in infrastructure and overall industrial growth. Sales have increased from 2.71 million units in 1999 to 4.35 million units in 2003, see figure 6.

Japanese truck sales declined from 1.72 million units in 2000 to 1.35 million units in 2003 owing to an unfavorable business and investment climate.  European truck sales have declined due to flat growth in Western Europe. The slow down in sales in the US is attributed to the downturn in the economy.

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