According to the statistics released by the Turkish Automotive Distributors Association (ODD), in the first seven months of this year the domestic passenger car market shrank by 13.3 percent compared to the same period last year, with sales declining to 289,021 units. In July, domestic sales of passenger cars totaled 44,531 units, up 2.3 percent compared to July 2011.
In the first seven months, sales of light commercial vehicles declined by 24.9 percent compared to the first seven months of last year, falling to 113,915 units. In July, sales of light commercial vehicles totaled 17,773 units, falling 8.9 percent year on year.
The association noted that the declines in vehicle sales in the January-July period were due to the increase in the Special Consumption Tax (ÖTV) imposed in Turkey on a variety of goods and due to sluggish economic activity amid the imposition of government measures to cool the economy.
Meanwhile, in line with the economic recovery seen in recent months and on the back of the removal of the base effect, the contraction in the passenger and light vehicle market declined to 1.17 percent in July.
The ODD has forecast that total sales in the Turkish automotive sector in 2012 will be in the range of 775,000-825,000 units.