The temporary sales fillip created in the wake of Canberra's January hailstorm proved a saving grace for the ACT as elsewhere the crushing effects of the coronavirus delivered an 18 per cent national downturn in new car sales for March.
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National sales figures released on Friday revealed the ACT was the only state or territory to post a positive result for March.
New car sales in the ACT were up 77 per cent for March whereas all other jurisdictions recorded dramatic falls of between 14.4 per cent and 33.5 per cent.
Only a handful of brands missed out on the hailstorm sales bonanza.
Market leader Toyota was the greatest beneficiary from the worst hailstorm seen in Canberra for more than a decade.
Nearly 3000 new cars were sold in the ACT during March, with Toyota selling 410, Mazda delivering 383, Hyundai 295, Volkswagen 261, Honda 241 and Kia 228.
Many Canberra car dealers reported record monthly sales.
Thousands of hail damaged cars still remain on grass at holding yards on the northside and southside of Canberra, with auction houses predicting it will now take up to nine months to sell off all vehicles written off by insurance companies.
However, the huge boost for the ACT market revealed by the March figures has been followed by a massive fall.
Local dealers report that showroom traffic and customer enquiry rates has almost completely dried up. One Canberra dealer, who didn't want to be named, said he had seen one customer through his showroom in the past four days.
Although dealers are still trading in the ACT and workshop service activity remains generally strong, the national fallout from the coronavirus pandemic and the recent ramp-up in travel restrictions is expected to have significant effects for the industry.
The impact of dealers having to finance floor stock when there are very few buyers in the market is certain to steadily build financial pressure on businesses. One of Australia's largest and most successful car dealer conglomerates, AP Eagers, has seen its share price dive by 60 per cent in recent weeks.
Car factories have been idled in most countries except Japan, where they are operating at reduced capacity.
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However, most car manufacturers build to a just-in-time parts delivery model to minimise warehousing. Large scale disruptions to international supply lines means the parts don't arrive and production either has to be significantly wound back or the factory shut down completely.
Moody's Investors Service has cut the ratings of all international carmakers.