Israeli vehicles market momentum continues in 2024. Sales in November reported 18,087 units, posting a 40.2% gain after dipping in previous months. YTD figures at 258,749 were down 2% compared to the prior year. Hyundai drops to 2nd as Toyota becomes new leader.
Market Trend and Outlook
Israel’s economy is projected to grow by 1.9% in 2024, recovering to 4.6% in 2025 despite the severe impact of the October 2023 terrorist attacks and subsequent war. The economy is being driven by strong private and government consumption, although investment, particularly in construction, is expected to recover only partially from the sharp decline in late 2023. Inflation is forecasted to remain at 2.5% in 2024-2025, with disinflation allowing for gradual interest rate cuts. Fiscal and monetary policies are adapting to the increased sovereign risk and higher military expenditures, with prudent management necessary to maintain stability. Risks remain high, especially if the conflict escalates or labor shortages persist.
Supported by an overall positive economic outlook, the Israeli vehicle market in November 2024 surged in double digits. Monthly sales reported 18,087 new registrations (+40.2%). YTD figures at 258,749 were down 2% compared to the prior year.
Looking at cumulative data up to November brand-wise, the leader became Toyota -up 2 spots- at 31,735 sales (+4.2%), in front of Hyundai -down 1 spot- at 26,900 sales (-35.3%) and Kia -down 1 spot- at 23,920 registrations (-26%).
BYD ranked into 4th with 18,344 sales (+23.1%), followed by Skoda with 18,228 new registrations (+27%), Mazda at 14,459 (+6.5%) and Chery in 7th with 12,040 units sold (+9.6%).
Mitsubishi ranked into 8th with 10,488 sales (+2.5%), followed by Seat -up 5 spots- at 9,110 sales (+62%) and Suzuki -down 1 spot- with 8,602 registrations (+0.9%).
Medium-Term Market Trend
The Israeli vehicles market in the past decade has had two main trends. From 2013 to 2016 the market grew year-by-year starting at 208,614 in 2013 and ending at an all-time high of 281,736 light vehicle sales. In the following year the market reversed, falling for 4 years in a row and reaching 246,311 sales by the end of 2019.
With the arrival of the pandemic in 2020 the light vehicle market collapsed even further, reaching 211,322 new car registrations by the end of the year (-14.2%).
Luckily the market boomed in the following year, with 2021 reaching a new all-time high at 284,432 sales , a +34.6% year-on-year variation. The following year the market underperformed, with sales in 2022 reaching 268,141 (-7.3%). A combination of factors are behind the current industry struggle: the disruption in the global supply chain caused by a lack of raw materials, in particular for the production of microchips and Governments push towards Evs, an expensive alternative for low income consumers.
This conflict heavily effected the Israeli Vehicle Market, which totaled 268,878 new sales in 2023 and grew a mere 0.3%
Tables with sales figures
In the tables below we report sales for 10 Brands and top 10 Manufacturers Groups.
