Massive Decline in SA Wholesale Retail and Automotive Sales

According to the latest Stats SA economic sector figures released today (17 Oct), the Wholesale Retail and Motor trade sales indicators for August in South Africa, paints a miserable picture of what is happening in the South African economy currently.

Wholesale Sales Collapse in August

Measured in real terms using constant 2019 bench-mark prices, wholesale trade sales declined by a substantive -14,6% in August 2024 when compared year-on-year with August 2023. The seasonally adjusted wholesale trade sales decreased by -5,3% in August 2024 compared with July 2024. This followed month-on-month changes of -1,0% in July 2024 and 0,9% in June 2024.

Looking at the three months ended August 2024, seasonally adjusted wholesale trade sales decreased by -2,3% compared with the previous three months.

The main negative contributors were dealers in solid, liquid and gaseous fuels and related products with a massive -33,6% drop, and the construction and building materials sector seeing a -21,8% drop 

Wholesale trade sales decreased by 5,2% in the three months ended August 2024 compared with the three months ended August 2023. The main negative contributor was dealers in solid, liquid and gaseous fuels and related products (-22,6% and contributing -6,2 percentage points).

The only key contributor with positive growth was sales in the machinery, equipment and supplies sector that saw an increase of 7,8%.

Motor Industry Sales Crash in August

Measured in real terms at constant 2019 prices, motor trade sales decreased by -2,4% year-on-year in August 2024.

The largest negative contributors to this decrease were:

• Sales in automotive accessories dropped by -7,9%
• New vehicle sales fell by -4,9%.

Pointing to increasing pressure on individuals and businesses, the only positive contributor to the automotive sector in August was used vehicle sales that grew by 7,5%, highlighting a lack of affordability with consumers choosing to buy cheaper second hand vehicles in place of new. 

Seasonally adjusted motor trade sales remained unchanged with a 0% variance in August 2024 compared with July 2024, Following month-on-month changes of 0,5% in July 2024 and 4,7% in June 2024.