In the year of the Covid tsunami that upset the habits and consumption of Italians, vehicle spending is reduced by 14.9%, but the value of key segments related to the technological transformation of the house such as Information Technology (+ 29.6%) and small household appliances (+ 13.9%). According to the data of the 27th edition of the Findomestic Observatory, created in collaboration with Prometeia, purchases of durable goods drop in 2020 to 62 billion euros with a decrease of 10.3% compared to 2019, a point and a half lower than that consumption tout court (-11.8%).
“This interrupts the positive dynamic that had lasted for six consecutive years”, comments Claudio Bardazzi, head of the Findomestic Observatory. “The trend in consumption”, he adds, “reflects the radical changes triggered by the health emergency. The explosion of smart working and integrated digital teaching has returned the centrality to the family dimension, orienting the lifestyle towards the functionality, safety and comfort of domestic environments. Two figures clearly explain this: + 32% of freezers and + 38% of wine cabinets. The home becomes, at the same time, a refuge and a space increasingly devoted to well-being “.
Vehicle purchases collapse
The vehicle market (new, used and two-wheeled cars) – effectively reset during the lockdown – manages to avert the collapse thanks to state eco-incentives, which led to a significant recovery in the sector starting especially from August, even if the deceleration of losses had already begun in June: 2020, according to the Findomestic Observatory, closed at 33.8 billion. For Italian families, used cars, albeit down by 13.5% in terms of value, continue to represent the most consistent item of expenditure with a total of 17 billion euros. Sales at the end of the year amounted to 2,475,717, 14.4% less than in 2019. For new cars purchased by individuals, the decline in spending stood at 17.2% for a total value of 15.2 billion EUR. In terms of registrations, at the end of the year, the demand of Italian families fell by 19.1% within a market, which, including business demand, closed 2020 with 1,393,572 pieces sold (-27.7% ).
The car market turns green
The relaunch of the car market in the post-lockdown is tinged with green: the growth of alternative fuel vehicles – LPG, methane, hybrid and electric – stood at + 35.3%. One in three cars among those newly registered is green, with a consequent erosion of the market share of both petrol vehicles (37.5% of sales, down 38.7% on 2019) and diesel vehicles (33, 1% of the total, with a liability of 40.1%). In the sustainable mobility segment, electric cars (hybrid, plug-in and full electric) cover a 69.2% share and are the protagonists of a real boom with a growth of 123.3% on registered vehicles; On the other hand, LPG-powered vehicles (-31.1%) and, in part, methane-powered vehicles (-18.2%) are losing their appeal.
We still have the bike
The motor vehicle segment is affected to a relative extent by the crisis scenario: the reduction in turnover stops at 6.9%, for a total value of 1.7 billion. Two-wheeler sales recorded a particularly significant increase in the summer and in particular in June (+ 35.4%) and August (+ 41.4%): an effect of the revision of the mobility paradigms in times of pandemic emergency, which leads to a growing preference for travel without public transport.
How the furniture is doing
The two major sectors of the home sector show diverging trends: the negative trend in furniture (-12.0%) is offset by the growth of consumer technology (+ 4.2%), notes the Findomestic Observatory. Furniture had started 2020 on the right foot: + 2% in January and + 2.9% in February were canceled out by the very serious losses triggered by the spring lockdown, with -53.4% in March and even the -85.5% in April. The ascent was then slow and tiring, but the trend has definitely started on the tracks of recovery: the market reached 13.4 billion at the end of the year. The online channel with a growth of 32% comes to weigh 13% within a market in which Italian families, by tradition, continue to prefer physical stores.
The surge in home technology
In the broad basket of consumer technology, the performance of the markets is particularly varied. The surge in information technology (+ 29.6%) feeds an overall turnover of 2.5 billion euros: this is the only segment with positive balances in all the individual months of 2020, with a peak of growth of 47.8% in May. Among the most successful products are webcams (+ 77.8%), laptops (+ 52.4%) and even tablets (+ 37.2%): a clear result of the smart turning point of work and instruction. The development of e-commerce contributes to the numbers of IT, which affects purchases with a share of 26.9%, marking an acceleration of 56.1% compared to last year.
The boom of small appliances
In the tech sector, the trend of small household appliances is also decidedly favorable: with a balance sheet up 13.9%, the segment reaches a value of 1.7 billion euros. The positive variation matured mainly between May and June (respectively + 36.5% and + 36.7%) thanks in particular to sales of hair clippers (+ 55.3%) and food processors (+ 29.3%), a reflection of the new needs developed during the lockdown. The contribution of purchases through e-commerce is also growing strongly for small household appliances: + 59.7% in value and an incidence at 36.9%.
Thanks to a last quarter of the year with monthly growth of more than 20%, consumer electronics also closed 2020 positively with a 4.6% growth in turnover for a total value of almost 2 billion euros. The recovery of the sector in the second half of the year was driven by the significant growth in TV sales (+8.0). Loudspeakers (+ 7.3%) were confirmed among the top products of the year, given the need for good audio quality for the new needs of work and study at home, induced by the health crisis; finally renewed interest in drones which again show significant increases (+ 53.5%), while remaining a market niche.
Purchases of large household appliances and telephony are falling
On the other hand, the market for large household appliances is slightly down, falling to 3.1 billion overall, with a contraction of 0.7%., despite the sprint of products such as freezers (+ 32.3%) and wine cabinets (+ 37.9%). The performance of telephony is also negative, which loses 4.4%, falling back to 5.5 billion overall, despite the boom in purchases on the web: + 72.4% for an incidence of 16%. In particular, the decline in smartphones weighs (-6.5%), which is not offset by the significant increase in headphones (+ 38.6%) and wearables devices (+16.0).
Consumer credit is down
The consumer credit market, as Assofin data certifies, registered one at the end of 2020 drop in disbursements of 21.1%: an inevitable repercussion of the fall in consumption caused by the pandemic crisis. Findomestic showed a slightly better trend than the average at the end of the year: -18.2%.
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