MOSCOW, Jan 12 (Reuters) – Automotive gross sales in Russia collapsed by 58.8% in 2022, the Affiliation of European Companies (AEB) mentioned on Thursday, because the business reels from the affect of Western sanctions on Moscow.
A number of Russian auto makers suspended manufacturing for intervals of final 12 months because the business struggled to supply components and set up new provide chains following the imposition of the sanctions over Moscow’s navy actions in Ukraine.
“The problems with sanctions and unprecedented stress on the Russian market on all fronts, in fact, couldn’t however have an effect on the automotive business,” the pinnacle of the AEB’s vehicle committee, Alexey Kalitsev, advised a briefing.
Excessive-profile Western auto producers corresponding to Renault additionally left the market, making the business – beforehand closely reliant on Western funding and high-tech tools – one of many hardest hit by the fallout from the battle.
At one level main producer Avtovaz was promoting Lada vehicles with out airbags or anti-lock braking methods (ABS) because of components shortages.
Costs for vehicles have additionally risen considerably in Russia – a truth which stays the primary “deterrent” to a gross sales rebound, Kalitsev mentioned. Retail gross sales slumped throughout the Russian financial system in 2022 amid a recession, value instability and heightened uncertainty.
Whole automotive gross sales for the 12 months got here in at 687,370, in comparison with greater than 1.6 million in 2021, the AEB mentioned. Within the month of December, gross sales have been down 50.2%. The figures don’t embody gross sales of BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Chery manufacturers.
The business physique forecast that gross sales would climb by 12% in 2023 to round 770,000 autos. Kalitsev mentioned he anticipated 5-7 new automotive manufacturers may seem on the Russian market this 12 months, with out offering particulars.
“With a good mixture of circumstances … development above 12% can also be attainable. However nobody on the planet can predict something within the present state of affairs,” he mentioned.
Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov and Jake Cordell; Enhancing by Mark Trevelyan
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