Vehicle sales rise again in February

The resurgence of the Australian vehicle market has continued, with demand for new cars and trucks jumping by 5.1 per cent in February.

The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries said 83,977 vehicles were sold last month, compared to 79,940 in same month last year.

That took demand for the first two months of 2021 to 163,643, an increase of 7.9 per cent.

FCAI chief executive Tony Weber said the result showed that confidence was continuing to grow in the market after the downturn in early 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic hit.

"During the past four months we have seen an increase of 10.6 per cent in new vehicles," he said.

"We remain confident that this trend of growth will continue in an environment where business operating conditions continue to normalise."

The February increase came after an 11.1 per cent improvement in January and further entrenched the turnaround for the sector after sales fell 48.5 per cent in April and 35 per cent in May, as Australia endured the first wave of COVID-19 cases.

February sales also reflected the continued shift away from passenger vehicles with demand falling 15.3 per cent while sales of sports utility vehicles rose by 8.6 per cent and those of commercial vehicles by 24.3 per cent.

Toyota was the leading brand in February with 18,375 vehicles followed by Mazda with 8322 and Hyundai on 6252.

The Toyota Hilux was the best-selling vehicle last month with 4808 retailed, ahead of the Ford Ranger with 2900 and the Toyota Rav4 with 2750.