Car sales on the Romanian market exceeded 83,000 units in the first eight months of this year, some 16% up from last year, according to the Romanian Carmakers and Importers Association (APIA) statistics.
Still, whereas the domestic vehicle market had seen almost 19% growth in the first seven months, the sales in August went down over 35% from the previous month.
Thus, whilst 14,000 vehicles were sold in July, the sales in August did not go beyond 9,000 units.
Even though lower than at the end of July, the growth of the auto market in the first eight months kept within the 15% – 25% estimated by analysts’ at the beginning of the year. Imports registered a constant growth pace ranging between 15% – 20% in the first seven months, while the sales of cars made in Romania decreased in the first part of the year, as domestic carmaker Dacia replaced its best seller in Romania – Dacia SupeR Nova, with Dacia Solenza. Sales later turned around and exceeded the value posted in the year-ago period, especially since Solenza sold better than Dacia officials expected.
Under the circumstances, imports amounted to nearly 33,000 units, as compared with 28,000 units in the first eight months of last year. The sales of Romanian vehicles went beyond 50,000 units, having gone up by about 6,000 units, or 13%. Domestic car output went up to 44,151 units in the first eight months this year, 3.5% more than in the corresponding period of last year.
Dacia ranks first among the best-selling vehicle brands in Romania, accounting for 36,000 units in the first eight months, while Daewoo ranks second with 13,400 units. Renault is the top imported car brand and has managed to sell 6,400 units eight months through the year. Skoda sold a little more than 4,046 vehicles in the same interval, while Volkswagen sold 3,800 units and Peugeot 3,500 units.
ionut.bonoiu@zf.ro