Russia’s new car sales may slide by as much as 50 percent in 2022 as a result of the economic sanctions being imposed against it in response to its invasion of Ukraine.
That’s according to Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, the head of the Duisburg Center for Automotive Research. The center recently published a study indicating that the ruble’s severe devaluation following economic sanctions from the west will have a significant impact on the automotive sector, reports Automobilewoche.
The study suggests that if China offers Russia aid, sales could contract by just a third, but that there will be a significant impact either way. This will not, however, be the first big slump to hit Russia in recent memory. In the wake of the 2008-2009 global economic crisis and in the wake of Russia’s annexation of Crimea, the country faced similar declines.
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The Center for Automotive Research reports that 1.67 million new vehicles were sold in Russia last year, which amounts to 2.3 percent of global sales. The biggest suppliers for the market were Renault-Nissan and Hyundai-Kia.
Late last week, Renault indicated that production at some of its plants might be affected by the crisis. The carmaker owns AvtoVAZ, which produces Lada vehicles. Neither it nor the Hyundai Group is among the automakers that have said they are pausing exports to Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.
Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Honda, Toyota, Mazda, the VW Group, Ford, GM, Jaguar, Aston Martin, and Volvo are some of the carmakers that said they will pause exports to Russia for the time being, which could also affect sales in 2022. Production delays caused by the war, though, have also caused supply line interruptions outside of Russia.
