NISSAN Clover Leaf has adjusted prices of its vehicles by at least 0,11% in response to the proposed increase in duty for imported vehicles.
BUSINESS REPORTER
In his mid-term fiscal policy review, Finance and Economic Development minister Patrick Chinamasa reviewed custom duty on imported vehicles saying vehicle imports accounted for 10% of the import bill in the period January to June.
According to the new prices effective November 1, Nissan Clover Leaf Motors would now sell a Nissan NP200 petrol truck for $21 029 up from $18 496.
The Nissan NP200 diesel car would be sold for $24 769 up from $21 750.
A Nissan Almera car would be sold for $26 360 up from $23 800.
A Navara 2,5 Turbo intercooled diesel 4×4 will be sold for $51 864 up from $45 669.
A 30-seater minibus will be sold for $84 784 from $63 000.
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In his mid-term fiscal policy review, Chinamasa reviewed custom duty on single cab tricks of payload more than 800kg, but less than 1400kg to 40% from 20%. Duty on double cab trucks was increased to 60% from 40%.
Passengermotor vehicles of engine capacity below 1 500cc—the favourite among the hard pressed Zimbabweans—would now attract a duty of 40% from 25%.
Chinamasa said the local assembly of motor vehicles benefits downstream industries, such as paint, carpet material, glasses’, tyres’; and batteries’ manufacturers, among others.
“These industries have, however, either closed or are operating at very low capacity due to low demand for goods and services from local motor vehicle assembly plants,” he said adding that the measure takes into account the need to protect consumers from unfair pricing and substandard products.
Chinamasa said a lot of foreign currency was channelled towards importation of motor vehicles to the detriment of the localmotor vehicle assembly plants, which are currently operating atbelow 1% of installed capacity.
The grey imports are a bit affordable for locals compared to locally assembled cars in the absence of cheap financing from banks.
Local banks are harm strung to offer long term financing for motor vehicle purchases.
Local assemblers such as Willowvale Madza Motor Industries are hamstrung to produce vehicles affordable on the local market.
Nissan Clover Leaf Motors managing director Stanford Sibanda told NewsDay recently that there was no business in new cars as a number of locals had low disposable income and hence couldn’t afford to buy.
“They would have wanted to buy new cars, but the reality is that they don’t have disposable income,” he said.
Sibanda said 60 000 grey imports were made last year compared to 7 000 new cars which were imported.
“It shows that the market has shifted in the last three years. It’s about the economy. We have to sort it out, create employment and put meaningful money into people’s pockets. We need lines of credit to banks such that whoever wants to, can get reasonable interest rates,” he said.
“The people will be in a position to buy new cars and the shift to new cars will occur.”
It is estimated that in 1997, demand for new vehicles stood at 35 000.
Of that, 18 000 were supplied by the four assembly plants — Willowvale Mazda Motor Industries, Quest, WH Dahmer and Deven Engineering. The demand for new vehicles contracted to an estimated 6 000 in 2011.
