The variety of new bike purchases has slumped to the bottom degree since 2008. FILE PHOTO | NMG
The variety of new bike purchases has slumped to the bottom degree since 2008, as excessive taxes and skyrocketing gasoline costs lower demand for the two-wheelers for personal and enterprise use.
Recent information from the Kenya Nationwide Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) reveals that new bikes registered final 12 months dropped by 52.6 per cent to 62,338, down from 113,513 in 2022.
This follows an increase in a number of levies final 12 months, together with value-added tax on petroleum merchandise that put gasoline out of attain of some transporters amongst them boda boda riders who discovered the enterprise more and more much less worthwhile.
New purchases of bikes, that are a typical technique of transport in Kenya, had been constantly rising yearly for the reason that authorities waived import taxes on them in 2008.
The primary sharp decline was recorded in 2022 when new registrations greater than halved from 285,203 in 2021.
This was across the similar time when Kenya’s gasoline costs began taking an upward trajectory following the onset of the struggle in Ukraine, which disrupted world oil provide and sparked inflationary pressures regionally.
Final 12 months, the federal government’s transfer to lift value-added tax on petroleum merchandise additionally dampened demand, with gasoline uptake dropping to a five-year low within the six months to December final 12 months, pointing to decreased use of highway transport. In the identical interval, there was a decline in passenger automotive purchases.
Newly registered saloon vehicles fell 13.5 p.c whereas station wagons dropped by two p.c and vans declined by 18.2 p.c.
Nevertheless, there was a surge in newly registered business autos, pointing to the rising use of mass public transport because the excessive prices of dwelling and gasoline costs bit final 12 months.
