The National Motorcycle Dealers Association (NMDA) says February’s low registrations are an expected consequence of December pre-registrations of Euro 3 machines. Registrations were down 21.6% compared with February last year – that’s more than 1000 fewer new motorcycles hitting the roads. Likewise, the year-to-date position this year indicates a similar position, being down 18.4%, just under 2000 units.
NMDA chief Steve Latham said: “Nearly all sectors suffered a decline in sales/registrations, with scooters showing the biggest decrease of 28.6%. This was the sector that was one of the biggest contributors to the December pre-reg issue. Likewise, when reviewing the power/cc split, it is the 51-125cc machines that take the biggest market decline, down 34.3%.
“In volume terms, February sales/registrations are generally low as many buyers will be waiting for the new ‘17’ March registration number plate to be on their new machine. So, it is expected that March registrations of motorcycles, particularly of the larger, traditional brands, could start to stabilise the market and bring it back to normality. Generally, retailers are reporting that established leisure riders are returning to the showrooms looking for their replacement bike as the new season unfolds. We will watch March registration with interest.”
Latham concluded: “Market leaders for February were Honda, Yamaha and BMW in that order, followed by Kawasaki and Triumph in fourth and fifth place, but it’s worth noting that, owing to the lower volumes, none of these big manufacturers registered more than1000 machines.”
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