Since the beginning of 2021, more cars began to be sold in Russia, although the car market showed growth, but modest: in February, sales increased by 0.8 percent. This is stated in the report of the “Association of European Businesses” (AEB).
The total volume of the Russian car market amounted to slightly more than 120 thousand cars (+ 1008 cars compared to February 2020). “It looks like this is a sign of continued stabilization with another month of recovery,” commented Thomas Stärzel, chairman of the AEB Automobile Manufacturers Committee. Avtovaz, Skoda and Mazda cars remain in the top sales.
Earlier in February, it became known that car production in Russia was under threat due to a shortage of microcircuits around the world. The shortage affected those microcircuits that are necessary for ERA-GLONASS systems, tachographs, instrument control panels, engine control units, body electronics, multimedia systems and others.
The fact is that in the spring of 2020, against the backdrop of a pandemic, carmakers reduced orders, and now the industry was simply not ready for a sharp recovery in volumes. In general, due to the lack of semiconductors in the first quarter, the production of about a million cars around the world will be postponed, and it will not be possible to fully satisfy the demand of the automotive industry for chips until the second half of 2021.
Since February 1, Toyota, Lexus, Skoda and Kia have raised prices for cars in Russia. On average, the cost of mass-produced models increased by 10-30 thousand rubles, and premium ones – by more than 50 thousand rubles. Another price hike is expected in March.