Auto production declines 4 percent in March

ISTANBUL

Turkish carmakers produced a total of 136,611 vehicles in March, marking a 4.3 percent decline from the same month of 2022, the data from the Automotive Manufacturers’ Association (OSD) have shown.

Passenger car production ticked down 0.4 percent year-on-year last month to 87,260 units.

The total auto market expanded by 4.2 percent annually as more than 114,000 vehicles were sold in the country in March, with passenger car sales rising 9.9 percent to 87,071.

Imports of passenger cars soared 20 percent in March from a year ago to 61,466 units, according to the OSD data.

Auto sales are expected to slow to around 80,000 units in April due to the long Eid holiday and the local elections, according to the representatives of the industry.

Despite high prices and problems with accessing loans, demand for brand-new cars remains strong, said Zafer Başar, the general manager of Yüce Auto Skoda.

“Normally, under such circumstances, sales should have declined sharply. The reason why sales are not dropping is that people who cannot afford a house are buying vehicles, fearing that prices will go higher in coming months,” Başar suggested.

He noted that some 85 percent of car buyers are those who already own one.

Data from OSD showed that passenger car sales increased by 33 percent in the first three months of 2024 from a year earlier to 233,389 units, with total vehicle sales rising 24 percent to around 308,000.

The auto industry’s production rose 2.9 percent to 377,000, while passenger car output was up 7.3 percent to 238,000.

Car imports surged 41 percent year-on-year in January-March to some 160,000.

The industry’s export revenues exceeded $9.2 billion in the first quarter, rising 4.6 percent annually, but passenger car exports fell 4.2 percent to $2.47 billion, according to the OSD data.