Argentina mid-February 2014: Importers crushed by new laws

Peugeot saw its Argentinean sales double year-on-year over the period…

* See the Top 30 All-brands ranking by clicking on the title! Thanks Leandro *

The combined effect of a tax hike on imported models and the devaluation of the local currency could mean the Argentinean new car market will drop by as much as 40% in 2014, according to the country’s car dealers! For now, the overall market is not suffering with sales up 7% year-on-year over the first half of February at 25,942 registrations and up 0.2% year-to-date at 133,542. However there are already massive disparities between local producers and importers. Peugeot, assembling most of its range locally, gains 101% year-on-year and with the exception of Chevrolet (-28%), all local producers improve their sales result year-on-year. Reversely, all importers bar Nissan, Dodge, Smart and Ferrari see their sales decline! Most strikingly but not surprisingly, the luxury importers, the most affected by the tax hike, suffer the most: BMW is down 81% and Audi down 78%… According to local website Autoblog, one thing is certain in 2014 as far as new car sales in Argentina are concerned: uncertainty reigns…

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Full mid-February 2014 Top 30 All-brands Ranking Table below.