ASTANA (TCA) — Demand for inexpensive foreign-made cars will remain stable in Kazakhstan for several years, Andrei Lavrentev, the chairman of the board of JSC Group of Companies Allur (Allur Group) and president of the Kazakhstan Association of Car Business, said at the Kazakhstan International Automotive Forum in Astana on March 1, the Atameken National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan reported on its website.
Lavrentev said that the “gray” import of cars has increased significantly in Kazakhstan due to the devaluation of the Russian ruble and disparity of the Kazakh tenge rate.
“It had a major impact in 2014. Within 4 months more than $4 billion was spent [by Kazakhstan citizens] in Russia for the purchase of cars. It was a huge blow at both [Kazakh] importers and producers [of cars],” said Lavrentev.
In his words, the situation was improved due to “decisive actions” of the Kazakh Government which introduced the program of concessional lending for the purchase of cars assembled in Kazakhstan, which has increased the automobile production in Kazakhstan. The situation has also changed for the better after the Government’s ban on the import of cars that do not meet Euro-4 standard.
Lavrentev said that the market of second-hand vehicles has fallen to 3 percent in Kazakhstan, while the segment of inexpensive cars has increased.
The sales of vehicles with prices between $5,000 and $15,000 have grown threefold, Lavrentev said.
He said that until 2020, the sales of inexpensive cars of below $15,000 will be showing a growth trend, and the situation is unlikely to change.
