Romania’s auto market, up 10% in first nine months

Sales of vehicles in Romania increased by 15.9% in September compared to the same month of last year, and by 9.7% in the first nine months of the year, reaching close to 148,000 units, according to the Association of Car Producers and Importers – APIA.

The increase was even higher on the passenger car segment, namely 11.9% in the first nine months, to 127,251 units.

Commercial vehicle sales only went up by 1.8% in the same period, to 20,715 units, APIA data show.

The positive evolution of the local car sales was mainly driven by purchases made by individuals, which increased by almost 30% year-on-year, to 54,558 units. Thus, the retail segment reached 43% of the total passenger car sales in the first nine months of this year, up from 37% last year.

The top-selling passenger car brands were Dacia (38,800 units, 30.5% market share), Volkswagen (11,500 units, 9% market share), Renault (10,470 units, 8.2% share), Skoda (10,370 units, 8.1% share), and Ford (8,330 units, 6.5% share). Renault and Ford recorded sales increases of 20% in the first nine months.

Sales of electric or hybrid cars reached over 4,700 units, and a market share of 3.7%.

(Photo: Pixabay)