Romanians take to foreign cars

Car imports have doubled over the first six months of the year, registering a 90% increase as compared to the similar period of last year, while the imports of vehicles rose by 76% against the year-ago period.

“The trend posted since the second half of last year, namely the shift of the car market to a normal structure, maintained over the first six months of this year. The spectacular increase of imports is no longer surprising, as they hold one third of the market,” Dan Vardie, general secretary of the Association of Car Producers and Importers from Romania (APIA), told Ziarul Financiar.

“We estimate that car imports will stand at 20-21,000 units by the end of the year.”

Only four in one hundred cars sold in Romania in 1996 were imported, but the share of imported cars has risen ten times lately, while the total car market shrank.

As 30 in 100 new cars are currently imported, the structure of the Romanian car market is similar to the situation on the European markets.

The Romanian car market is actually reviving, after the collapse that occurred two years ago. Although the auto market registered a 13% increase in Q1 this year as compared to the year-ago period, growth is still one third lower than the situation in 1998 and 1999.

“Market growth is lower than expected due to the less spectacular evolution of the Romanian made cars, especially due to the fall of Daewoo sales,” Vardie added.

“This was offset by the 76% increase in imports, registered mainly by brands such as Renault, Skoda and Volkswagen.”

The best-selling imported cars were Renault Megane (with 1,477 units), Renault Clio (with 1,135 units), Skoda Octavia (with 707 units) and Volkswagen Passat (with 701 units). The ten best-selling car brands were Renault, Volkswagen, Skoda, Peugeot, Fiat, Ford, Opel, Hyundai, Mercedes Benz and Nissan.