Sales of used cars in March grew by almost 13%
The market of vehicles with a mileage in March showed an increase by February, but lost to similar last year. The seasonal factor and the specifics of the segment of used cars, which became alternative for those who do not want to drive Chinese cars, on the one hand, and intend to save on the other, affected. In forecasts, dealers and market participants diverge: some are waiting for stagnation in April, others – growth within 10%.
Sales of passing cars with used cars in Russia in March decreased by 10.7% a year by the year, to 448.3 thousand units, calculated in Avtostat. Regarding February, growth was 12.9%. Positive dynamics is provided by the fact that the secondary market is an alternative for citizens who do not want to acquire a foreign car of Chinese -made, says Sergey Tselikov, CEO of Avtostat. According to the expert, the brands from the PRC in the total structure of sales of mileage in the first quarter accounted for only 4%.
The lower price also affects the choice in favor of a used machine. “A decent car can be found for 1-2 million rubles,” says Mr. Tselikov. Now the market of new cars is filled with crossovers, and the more popular sedans and hatchbacks previously – with the exception of LADA – are widely represented in the secondary, so those who want to purchase such machines are more often turned to a used segment, the expert adds.
For a month, seasonal demand affected the growth of sales for a month, said the executive director of the agency Sergey Udalov. And the fall in annual terms, according to the expert, is associated with the effect of a high base: in March last year, sales were at a high level on the eve of the new rules for the import of cars to Russia.
Many dealers surveyed by Kommersant did not notice the seasonal growth of demand in the market – on the contrary, they evaluate sales below February.
Sergei Tselikov clarifies that most transactions in the secondary segment occur between private individuals, and on official dealers – in addition to dealers and independent players – about 15% of the market accounts.
Andrei Grishakov, director of the Avtodoma Group of Companies and the Avtopets Center Group of Companies, says that sales growth is not recorded either by the results of March or actual transactions in April. He connects this, in particular, with a high key rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and a news background, which « makes uncertainty with the possibility of a return or non -return of the departed brands. »
According to Mr. Grishakov, against the background of low demand, discount sentences are now applying to mileage cars. “Given the cost of financing at the moment, most car dealers and professional sellers are forced to sell cars as soon as possible,” he explains. Vadim Chernousov, Director of the Rolf Car Together, notes that dealers are forced to give discounts in the context of overstocking. “The lack of demand in the first quarter is another reason for the introduction of discount programs,” he adds. The average price of a mileage with a mileage in January -March decreased by a year by almost 500 thousand rubles, not overcoming a mark of 2 million rubles, said the deputy leader Avilon in the direction of Roman Titov Roman. Mr. Tselikov estimates the average cost of cars in a used segment of 1.2 million rubles.
The leader of the segment of used cars in March remains the LADA brand, the sales of which in annual terms were reduced by 1.5%, to 121.29 thousand units.
The second place is saved by the Japanese Toyota, which reduced the implementation by 16.1%, to 43.59 thousand pieces. The South Korea KIA is closed with a result of 23.8 thousand used cars, which is 18.9% lower than last year. Following are Hyundai and Nissan, the sales of which fell by 16.7%, to 23.3 thousand pieces, and 18.4%, to 19.3 thousand units, respectively. In the first ten, all brands show two -digit growth in relation to the level of monthly statute of limitations, and in an annual comparison – the fall, they note in the « Autostat ». “And here it is especially worth noting Volkswagen, who added less than others (by 9%) in a month, and sank the most (by 20%) for a year,” the agency said.
According to the results of the first quarter, according to Avtostat, sales of passenger cars with mileage increased by 3.2%for a year, to 1.27 million pieces. According to Mr. Udalov, this is more explained by the high results of January. Experts and market participants have few optimism – in particular, Sergei Tselikov predicts the fall of the secondary market in 2025 by 10-12%. “April will not show positive dynamics, and there will be a repetition of March in quantitative terms,” Mr. Grishakov is sure. Vadim Chernousov is more optimistic in estimates and predicts the growth of sales of used cars in April relative to March, but not more than 10%. “In the absence of a positive dynamics of demand, we admit to reduce prices for cars with an average of 5%,” the top manager summarizes.
