COMMENT: Innovate to survive ............................................................................Page 4 NEWS: Castiglioni strengthens MV Agusta Board..........................................................Page 9
JULY 2013 ISSUE #113
PRODUCTS
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ACEM figures show European PTW market down -18.2% for first four months of 2013
F
IGURES released at the end of May by ACEM, the Brussels based motorcycle industry trade association (the Association of European Motorcycle Manufacturers and Importers) show total PTW sales for the 21 major European markets they monitor down by 82,417 units compared to the first four months of 2012; a decline of -18.2 percent. As part of a continuing five year pattern of decline ACEM is pointing to youth unemployment (in particular) and the "protracted rainy and cold climate in April delaying the start of the motorcycling season" as primary reasons. Sales of PTWs for the first four months are reported as being 369,130 vehicles against 451,547 in the first four months of 2012. ACEM says that "the usual spike in sales, which coincides with the onset of the spring, has not materialised, postponed by bad weather conditions all over the EU. This decline, however, can largely be attributed to the
economic context. Diminishing motorcycle and scooter registrations can be linked to the growing unemployment rates of young people all across Europe." They go on to say that "an endemic lack of disposable income and work opportunities are reducing youths’ capacity to access convenient and flexible transport." For the month of April specifically, PTW (Powered-Two-Wheeler) sales in Europe are said to have totalled 140,285 units. Year to date motorcycle registrations are reported to be in decline more slowly than small cc machines, -15.4 percent for the first four months of the year, with moped sales down -24.3 percent. "Compared to March the magnitude of the drop has slowed somewhat, with Germany able to halve the losses accumulated in the three months to March at -7.4 percent." Of the other markets that ACEM monitors Austria was down -8.8 percent; France -8.3 percent; Poland -21.8%; The Netherlands -22.1
percent; Italy -31.2 percent; Spain -15.6 percent; Greece -32.6 percent; UK -10.0 percent." At their annual conference in Brussels in January ACEM reported that annual European PTW registrations had declined to some 1.5m units in 2012, meaning that they had nearly halved since 2007 (2.7m units), and at that stage were pinning hopes of a stabilisation for the year(s) ahead on a trend that appeared to show the rate of decline to be reducing. However, although a clear difference is continuing to emerge between southern and northern European markets, and between the motorcycle market and the small cc market, despite two thirds of market value being in the one third of units of 350cc and above, the trend seen so far this year offers manufacturers and dealers little encouragement. Under the theme "Motorcycling Matters" ACEM successfully called on the EU to bring motorcycling in from
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NEws ROOM 6-9, 40
TRADEZONE 36
INDEX 38