Following marginal year-on-year declines of -0.4% in July and -0.8% in August, Turkey’s automotive market expanded 15.2% in September 2012 to 73,305 units. In the same month a year earlier, the industry had posted sales of 63,643 vehicles.
Data compiled by the Automotive Manufacturers’ Association (OSD) and the International Organisation of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (OICA) show that last month’s figures were also up compared with August 2012’s 60,871 units.
The growth last month was primarily the result of a sharp 23.8% rise in the number of passenger cars sold in the country. Car numbers rose from 39,964 units in September 2011 to 49,460 units last month. This was the best September for this segment since 2009.
The commercial vehicle segment posted a small year-on-year increase last month, with sales rising from 23,679 units to 23,845. The light CV segment accounted for sales of 20,269 units last month, up from 20,165 in the corresponding month a year ago. The truck segment, comprising trucks over five tonnes, was the only one that posted declining figures year-on-year. This segment accounted for 3,000 units last month, compared with 3,081 in September 2011.
Midibus sales in September rose from 301 units in 2011 to 324 in 2012, while bus sales improved to 252 units from 132 in the same month last year.
Automotive imports into Turkey grew as well in September, rising by 22.8% from 37,104 units to 45,547. Exports, on the other hand, slid 5.6% year-on-year, from 63,820 to 60,271 units. Overall, automotive exports from Turkey were valued at US$1.52bn last month, 8.9% lower than the US$1.67bn reported in September 2011.
A total of 99,643 vehicles were produced in Turkey last month. Compared with the 103,280 vehicles produced in September last year, this figure translated into a decline of 3.5%.
