Government viewed the vehicle manufacturing industry in South Africa as "strategic" and would continue supporting it, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said on Tuesday.

Briefing the media at Parliament ahead of debate on his department's budget vote in the National Assembly, he said government also sought to influence the direction the auto sector took.

Davies was responding to a question on why government was continuing to support the motor industry given the trouble it was experiencing in the face of falling demand for vehicles.

"I think that the auto industry has got some very, very important linkages to other industrial sectors, and we need to preserve that capacity," he said.

Sectors supplying goods to auto manufacturers included the leather, steel and glass industries, and many engineering industries.

"The auto industry is connected with many value chains in the economy, so it's strategic... we need to preserve the existing capacity.

"But our objectives, in terms of direction, are to emphasise the more labour-absorbing, components-manufacturing industry, and also... to take the automotive programme in the direction of heavy and commercial vehicles.

"We're having a major public transport upgrade in this country. We want to make sure that we are producing the vehicles that will take people on bus rapid transit systems and so on.

"We want to make sure that the commercial vehicles... that an increasing proportion of those are manufactured in South Africa.

"It's not just we're preserving something in its current form; we want to influence its direction," Davies said.

Sapa

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