Import Spend Down 34%, Registrations Up 18% in Sept — Which Number Matters?

CBSL's September external sector data showed motor vehicle import spending fell 34.4% year-on-year to $188 million, yet total registrations jumped 18.3% month-on-month to 54,214 units, mostly on a rebound in two-wheelers and three-wheelers rather than cars. Over January-September the import bill came to $1.87 billion, about a tenth of the whole merchandise import bill. One side reads this as the surcharge and tighter financing finally biting: fewer dollars leaving the country, but actual car demand is still stuck, so the units climbing are cheap bikes and tuks, not SUVs or sedans — meaning showroom car prices have no real reason to drop soon. The other side says a shrinking import bill with more total units on the road is exactly how normalisation looks, and car prices will follow once dealer backlogs clear and LCs opened before the surcharge finally land. If you've been pricing a car in the last few weeks, has anything actually moved, or is "prices will fall" still just talk? මාසෙන් මාසෙට මිල අඩු වෙනවද, නැත්නම් කතාවක් විතරද?