German Bike and e-bike Sales Seem Invincible to COVID-19

According to the German bicycle industry association, ZIV, the market has suffered virtu-ally no ill effects due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The study seems to indicate that bikes and e-bikes have become the mode of transportation of choice among German citizens, boosting sales and keeping factory workers employed.

That said, a mid-February shutdown of manufacturing in China managed to disrupt sup-ply chains extensively, with many bike manufacturers unable to get their hands on vari-ous components and accessories. This actually caused many German bike shops to have to close, limiting sales until April.

However, online providers of bikes and e-bikes, reported record sales all year long, claim-ing sales throughout the Spring were much higher than anticipated.

Market-Specific Data

The report from ZIV indicated that around 3.2 bikes and e-bikes were sold between the months of January and June. This represents a 9.5% increase over 2019 figures and took place in spite of a slight drop in bicycle production throughout the country and a -14.4% drop in imports.

As impressive as those numbers are, it's worth noting that the same six-month period also saw a drop in export volume of around -2.6%. At the same time, the e-bike share of those experts was 38%, which marks yet another interesting trend.

After all, the overall sale of non-electric bicycles has been on the decline in recent years, with very few exceptions. To that point, ZIV predicts sales to hit nearly 2.1 million units for the first half of 2020 alone while anticipating double-digit growth in the e-bike sector to an estimated 1.1 million units.

Moving Forward

Ultimately, ZIV concludes that cycling of all sorts is seeing a major boost from the ongoing pandemic, with more people than ever switching to alternative modes of transportation. From a general standpoint, this seems to indicate the industry is a safe environment for investors.