Sales of Foreign Cars Continue to Soar

11.04.2008 (13:31) | St.Petersburg Times

Foreign car sales in Russia surged 54 percent in the first quarter to 454,069 vehicles from the year before, the Association of European Businesses said Thursday.

Chevrolet cars manufactured by General Motors Corp. were the most popular, with 58,498 vehicles sold in the period, or 59 percent more than last year, the association said in an e-mailed press release Thursday.

The numbers include sales of the Chevy-Niva sports-utility vehicle, which is produced at GM’s venture with AvtoVAZ, Russia’s biggest carmaker.

Three of the top five selling brands are locally produced, the statement said. Sales grew 44 percent in March, compared with the same month a year ago, the statement said.

Renault SA Chief Executive Officer Carlos Ghosn said on Jan. 30 that Russia will surpass Germany to become Europe’s biggest car market within two years. The Russian car market, spurred by an economy that has entered its 10th consecutive year of growth, had sales of more than 2.3 million vehicles last year, compared with 3.15 million in Germany.

“Russians love cars and it shows in statistics,” Ghosn said.

As demand increases, Renault, Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp., Toyota Motor and Volkswagen AG have started production in Russia or are building plants.

Russians spent a record $53.4 billion on cars last year, 67 percent more than in 2006, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP said in January.

www.sptimes.ru
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