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consolidated into six industrial groupings and those figures show Paccar
Page 26
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Group leads the way with a 22.8% share of the total. DaimlerChrysler occupies second spot with 10,153 vehicle registrations (18.3%), with Iveco just beating the Volvo Group to take third spot (see table. above).
Assess the market by brand and the picture remains fairly consistent: Daf retains its top spot, with Mercedes second and Iveco third.
Seania has re-emerged from a period of consolidation during 2002, when it stated it was reluctant to get heavily involved in the low-profit/high-volume fleet seetor,to post a massive 30% increase in sales and take fourth place in the UK sales league. Not bad for a company which only competes at 15 tonnes and above.
Way ahead
Volvo too suffered lower-thanexpected sales in 2002, due to poor supply of its new FH and FM ranges, but it fared better in 2003, outperforming the market as a whole with a 7.5% increase in sales.
Like Scania, Renault said it was holding back on some of the "less than lucrativebusiness in 2002, but with a 15.6% rise in registrations for 2003 there are signs that it's sharpening its pencil.
Only Iveco, ERF and Seddon Atkinson suffered declining sales in 2003. Iveco has been engaged in a lengthy period of consolidation over the past three years which has seen its market share slide. According to Iveco MD Giuseppe Franchi the company now has its buyback policy and used truck supply under control and will be aiming for a bigger slice of the cake in 2004. With a strong order book for the first quarter expect Iveco to come out fighting.
ERF troubles
Despite an excellent product and a record year for tractors. ERF's woes continue. Poor product supply early in the year hampered the MAN-owned company but there are signs of better times to come with a big increase in registrations in December.
Iveco's company, Seddon Atkinson, went through some major changes in 2003 as it closed its Oldham factory and transferred production to Spain. Lack of availability for the first half of the year hit the company's sales 19.4% down on 2002 but, like its parent company, SA is bullish about its prospects for 2004.
It will need to be on the ball however: Dennis, its main competitor in the refuse sector, seems to have been firing on all cylinders in 2003, with an impressive 60%-plus increase in sales. •