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The beginning of February , automobile dealers, like all other traders in Nepal, were effectively immobilized. No shipments came in, and business slowed to a virtual standstill.But no sooner had the blockade ended than Nepalis unleashed their purchasing power, particularly on two- and four-wheelers. Sales soared to dizzying heights as happily astounded dealers watched cars speeding out of their showrooms.
At the end of the last fiscal year 2015-16, vehicle registrations increased more than 43 percent with total registrations reaching 343,765 vehicles for the year. Automobile registrations have been swelling 15-20 percent annually for the past several years. The auto trade has posted a consistently aggressive growth rate in the past one decade. Except in the fiscal years 2010-11 and 2011-12 when the bubble burst in the real estate sector resulting in a setback to almost all the sectors including vehicles, the auto sector has been seeing only growth.
“This shows how the automobile sector, despite facing such a long blockade, has emerged as a necessity for people instead of a luxury,” said Anjan Shrestha, president of the Nepal Automobile Dealers’ Association (NADA).According to NADA, 7 percent of the country’s population owns a motorcycle and 0.7 percent of the population owns cars. The figure is still small and there is a lot of room for much bigger growth, which is clearly reflected in the blockade’s not affecting the growth of the auto market, auto dealers said.
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