Auto sector manufactures 735,000 cars in first half

ISTANBUL

Automakers in Turkey produced 735,062 vehicles, including automobiles and commercial vehicles, in the first half of 2019, according to a sector report.

In the January-June period, Turkey’s auto production dropped 13 percent on a yearly basis, said the Automotive Manufacturers’ Association (OSD).

The report showed that local carmakers’ passenger car output stood at 492,700 units in the first half of the year, pointing to a 12 percent decline compared to the same period of 2018.

Total commercial vehicle production also dropped 15 percent on an annual basis with light commercial vehicle output down 14 percent. 

The report said around 86 percent of manufactured vehicles were exported, marking an 8 percent annual decline to 634,768 units.

The country’s automotive exports totaled nearly $15.6 billion in the six-month period, down 7 percent from a year ago.

According to OSD data, local producers delivered a total of 419,046 passenger cars to foreign markets, generating $5.8 billion in export revenues which was 12 percent lower compared to the first half of last year.

The association also said Turkey’s overall auto sales market contracted 45 percent year-on-year to 200,901 vehicles.

Passenger cars sales were down 43 percent, while light commercial vehicle sales declined 50 percent in January-June.

In the passenger cars segment, the share of imported passenger cars in total sales was 56 percent.

Top international automakers — including Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Mercedes, Renault, and Toyota — have factories in Turkey, one of the world’s top auto sale markets.

In 2018, a total of 641,541 vehicles were sold in Turkey, with passenger cars taking a 75.8 percent share.

Another business group, the Automotive Distributors’ Association (ODD) said in June that it expected vehicle sales to be between 350,000 and 400,000 this year.

Last year, Turkey produced nearly 1.6 million vehicles, earning $32.2 billion from the exports of some 1.3 million vehicles.

According to the latest data from the Turkish Exporters’ Association (TİM), the local auto industry was the largest exporting sector with a 17 percent share in the country’s overall exports in the first half of the year.