Car sales rose 10.6% in August against August of last year, to 7,800 units, this being the second month of growth in the second half, according to statistics of the Automotive Manufacturers and Importers Association (APIA).
In the first eight months of this year the market fell 12% to 60,000 units, so in order to reach the 100,000-unit level estimated by companies in the sector for this year, an average of around 10,000 cars should be sold per month until the end of the year.
If the 10% rise is pursued on a monthly basis until the end of the year, the market could exceed 101,000 units, but if the market starts to decline again, 2011 sales may not even exceed 90,000 units sold. The first half in fact started with two consecutive months of growth, followed by decline.
“The August rise will most likely not be followed by another rise in September. The media coverage of the possible change of the pollution tax has only managed to freeze the car market again, and now everybody is waiting. The third quarter cannot see a rise for the time being,” said Nicolae Sorescu, head of the car division of the Radacini group, which controls deals of the Opel, Chevrolet, Mazda, Suzuki and Citroen brands.
The modification of the current pollution tax was announced as early as June this year, in that it would also apply for cars registered in Romania before 2007, but no measure has been adopted so far, beyond declarations.
Whereas at the beginning of this year APIA targeted a slight growth of car sales for 2011, at present companies on the market expect the market to decline this year, and to stagnate in 2012.
The car market, similarly to the real estate market, was significantly hurt by the crisis in the last four years, with car sales plunging nearly 70%.
(English version by Daniela Stoican)