NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS NEWS
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October brought 3208 new truck and van arrivals, against 1658 in September. Provisional New Zealand Customs figures show the near-doubling was carried almost entirely by light commercials – utes, vans and lorries under 3500kg – which made up 3045 of the month’s total. That is 43.8% more than the 2118 registered in October 2025, and the strongest month in the six the Customs report covers.
Heavy vehicles went the other way. At 163 units above 3500kg, October’s count trailed September’s 216 and the 316 of a year earlier, the weakest month in the series.
The split matters for businesses that buy vehicles for work. Light commercials are the default choice for trades people, couriers, and service operators, so a jump in arrivals points to replacement and fleet buying that had been held back. Heavy vehicles sit with freight, construction, and civil contractors, and that side of the market is not recovering at the same pace.
Origin is heavily concentrated. Thai-built vehicles accounted for 2234 of the month’s new commercials, against 969 in September. Japan followed on 502, China on 140, and the rest of the world 132 combined, with Spain at 72 and the United States 44.
That reflects Thailand’s role as a production base for the light utes and pickups sold here. For buyers thinking about delivery timing, a single-source supply chain of that size means shipping schedules and factory allocations decide what lands in a given month, more than local demand does.
For the year to date, 15,246 new commercials have come from Thailand and 4105 from Japan. All up, Customs has cleared 26,485 new and second-hand trucks and vans in 2026 – 23,538 new and 2947 used. The new total sits 4.6% below the 24,673 cleared by the same point of 2025; the used figure is 26.1% above last year’s 2338.
Second-hand arrivals were thinner. October brought 251 used trucks and vans, against 364 in September and 332 in October last year. Of those, 245 were under 3500kg and only six heavier, and Japan was again the dominant origin at 231.
Diesel and petrol split that flow almost evenly, at 137 against 108. Utes and lorries led both, with 98 diesel and 76 petrol, followed by 39 diesel vans and 32 petrol vans. The diesel weighting suggests buyers in this segment still put towing and load capacity ahead of fuel type, even as new-vehicle ranges shift.
Of everything with wheels, 19,487 vehicles cleared in October against 16,875 in September. Passenger cars accounted for 10,083 new and 5762 used, and the month also included 183 buses and coaches, 158 of them new.
For light commercials, the two measures moved broadly together in October. NZTA data records 3285 new commercial vehicles plated during the month, set against the 3045 light units Customs cleared. Used commercial registrations ran at 441, well above the 245 used light arrivals.
Heavy numbers diverge much more. September is the most recent month with published heavy registrations: 681 new vehicles above 3500kg GVM were plated, while Customs booked 216 heavy arrivals. The difference is in what each counts. Customs records only vehicles imported fully built up, while plating can follow arrival by months.
For operators weighing up a vehicle purchase, the October figures suggest more light stock is moving through the supply chain, which should ease availability and sharpen pricing on utes and vans in the months ahead. The heavy side is tighter, with arrivals at their lowest in the series, so buyers of larger trucks may face longer waits and less room to negotiate.
The used market is thinning at the same time, with arrivals down on both September and the same month a year earlier. Businesses that rely on second-hand light commercials may find fewer options and firmer prices.
The most recent three months of Customs numbers are provisional, and get revised once entries are re-cleared.
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