Strong expansion in auto market continues

ISTANBUL

The expansion in Türkiye’s auto market continued in May, with vehicle sales showing another robust annual increase of nearly 71 percent in the month.

Nearly 114,000 vehicles were sold on the local market in May, according to the data from the Automotive Distributors’ and Mobility Association (ODMD).

The annual increase in auto sales remained above 60 percent since February, rising 63 percent in April, 62 percent in March and 63.4 percent in February.

Passenger car sales grew 68.5 percent year-on-year in May to exceed 87,000 after rising nearly 70 percent in the previous month.

Last month, more than 24,000 light commercial vehicles (LCVs) were sold, pointing to a strong 80 percent increase from a year ago. That came on top of the 40 percent annual increase in LCV sales in April.

In May, consumers bought 2,592 electric vehicles, which translated into a staggering 589 percent year-on-year increase.

However, electric vehicles still accounted for 3 percent of all vehicle sales. In the first five months of 2023, electric vehicle sales grew more than 476 percent annually to reach 10,166.

Hybrid vehicle sales were up 49 percent to around 35,400.

From January to May, more than 445,000 vehicles were sold in the country, with passenger car sales growing 58.8 percent from a year ago to exceed 380,000. LCV sales increased 66 percent to some 105,000, according to the association.

Experts say that the reason behind the strong demand in the auto market is that people view cars as an investment in an environment of the negative real interests.