Seven Months Through The Year New Car Sales Down 52.5%

New car sales dropped 52.5% year-on-year to 82,821 units from the 174,414 units reported in the corresponding period of 2008, according to data centralized by the Associated Automotive Manufacturers and Importers in Romania (APIA). July sales reached 12,211 units, down by 58.6% from the 29,479 units reported for July 2008. Sales of Romanian-made cars reached 4,538 units in July, down by 49.3% year-on-year. Sales made in the first seven months of the year reached 26,080 units, down by 52.3% year-on-year.

• Domestic automotive production up 9.3%

Romania"s automotive production (cars, utility vehicles and buses) increased by 9.3% to 176,208 units in the first seven months of the year compared to the corresponding period of 2008. The car production in the first seven months of 2009 increased by 10.2% year-on-year to 166,706 units. The automotive production in July reached 34,517 units, up by 28% from the previous month.

According to APIA, Romania manufactured 9,502 utility vehicles between January and July 2009, down by 3.7% year-on-year. July"s output of utility vehicles totalled 1,566 units, up by 1.2% from June. Regarding automotive exports, APIA reported a 54.6% year-on-year increase to 149,348 units. Compared to the first seven months of 2008, Romania exported 46.6% more cars, i.e. 140,002 units. Romania"s car exports increased by 18.2% in July 2009 from the previous month, reaching 27,167 units. Exports of utility vehicles surged a whopping 776.7% year-on-year in the first seven months of 2009 to 9,346 units. Exports on the sub-segment for utility vehicles below 3.5 tonnes surged an amazing 940.4% to 9,301 units.

• Imported new car sales drop 62%

Sales of imported new cars reached 7,673 units in July, down by 62.6% from July 2008. The overall sales volume for the first seven months of the year totalled 56,741 imported cars, down by 52.6% from the corresponding period of 2008. Skoda was the best selling foreign brand in July with 763 units, followed by Hyundai with 748 units, KIA with 743 units, Ford with 728 units and Renault with 720 units.

• Less than 100,000 new motor vehicles sold in 7 months

The overall automotive market, including cars, utility vehicles and buses, totalled 92,526 units in the first seven months of the year, down by 56.1% from the 210,705 units sold in the corresponding period of 2008. In terms of market share, Dacia dominated July sales with 37.2%, followed by Skoda with 6.2% and Hyundai and KIA with 6.1% each.