Romanian Autos Sales Fall Following Accession

Sales statistics in the first month following accession indicate that the Romanian automotive market is suffering the same problems as the 2004 accession states.According to Romania's Asociatia Producatorilor si Importatorilor de Automobile (APIA, Automotive Manufacturers and Importers Association), passenger car sales fell 4.3% y-o-y in January and commercial vehicle sales declined by 19.4%, bringing the total to 16,390 units, a fall of 5.5%. Meanwhile, imports accelerated by 21.0% y-o-y in the month to 10,898 units. The share of imported vehicles in the automotive market rose from 51.9% to 66.5%, squeezing sales of domestically manufactured vehicles.

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