Automotive production rises 26 percent in May

ISTANBUL

Local carmakers produced nearly 104,000 vehicles in May, marking a 25.5 percent increase from a year ago, the Automotive Manufacturers’ Association (OSD) said.

That followed the 3.2 percent increase recorded in the previous month. The increase in the industry’s output in May was partially due to the base effect.

Passenger car production rose by 0.3 percent on an annual basis to 67,000 units last month, but commercial vehicle production leaped 132 percent to 37,000 units.

The local automotive market expanded nearly 19 percent in May from a year ago. Data from the OSD showed that more than 68,000 vehicles were sold on the local market. Passenger car sales increased 20 percent to around 52,000 units.

Turkey also boosted its passenger car imports by 35 percent to 33,500, while total vehicle imports rose by 26 percent to 40,000.

Local carmakers shipped nearly 79,000 vehicles to foreign markets, up 52 percent, generating $744 million in export revenues, rising from $680 million a year ago.

From January to May, the automotive industry’s output, however, fell by 3.5 percent compared with the same period of 2021 to around 514,000 vehicles, with passenger car production falling 16.2 percent to 296,400 units.

Commercial vehicle production grew 22 percent in the first five months of the year from a year ago to stand at 218,000 units.

In the first five months of 2022, the local automotive market contracted 11.5 percent. Passenger car sales were down 13.6 percent to 214,000 vehicles.

The industry’s export revenues climbed 3 percent on an annual basis to $12.7 billion, while revenues from passenger car exports shrank more than 14 percent to $3.6 billion.