According to the latest data released by the motorcycle trade association in Spain (ANESDOR), the motorcycle market there was up by +16.21 percent for the first three months of 2016, 28,499 units so far.
Because Easter meant fewer selling days, sales in March were broadly flat compared to March 2016 at -0.70 percent (10,812 units), meaning that the underlying trend remained positive.
In moped terms the Spanish market was -0.08 percent in March and is running at -2.48 percent so far in 2016 (3,147 units). In total PTW terms the market was -0.63 percent in March at 12,002 units, making it +14.36 percent for the first three months of 2016 at 31,644 units.
At the end of 2015 ANESDOR announced that it expected the strong growth seen in 2015 to continue, with total PTW registrations for 2016 reaching some 162,000 units - that would be further growth of around 9 percent from the 148,000 units sold in 2015 - 131,595 of which were motorcycles (+19.55 percent over 2014).
At the time Jose Maria Riano, the General Secretary of ANESDOR, had said that "2015 was a very positive year for the sector in Spain", and that in looking beyond the statistics "the motorcycle is clearly the choice of transport for millions of citizens in Spain, especially for their daily commute - PTWs are a major solution for mobility in Spain, reducing travel times between 50 and 70 percent, and reducing congestion and pollution".
Pointing to the greater age of the PTW fleet in Spain than is the case in neighbouring and nearby countries, he had again repeated his call for greater government support for the sector, "the average age of PTWs in Spain is 14.7 years. Despite the growth in new registrations the fleet actually aged further in 2015 - pointing to a strong growth in the total motorcycle park here. We believe that a review of the financial framework in which the PTW industry operates is needed in Spain and that simplifying driving licences would also favour fleet renewal".
After seeing the March and 2016 first quarter statistics, Riano said that "this data shows the continued recovery of the two-wheel sector in Spain, however, these three recent months have been warmer and drier than normal. There is still a long way to go - the figures are still well below the market sustainability level we wish to see - our goal is to see annual sales of 250,000 units".
