Egypt automotive sales down 5.2% y-o-y in February to 10,857 vehicles
Total vehicle sales fell 5.2% y-o-y in February to 10,857 vehicles, according to figures from the Automotive Information Council (AMIC), an industry association. Passenger car sales dropped 9% y-o-y to 6,980 units, but bus sales climbed 4% y-o-y to 1,304. Truck sales were up just under 3% y-o-y to 2,573, the report showed. February’s top-selling brands were Nissan (1,938 cars for a 28% share of sales), Hyundai (1,102, or 16%) and Toyota (691, or 10% market share). The automotive industry had shown signs of recovery last year following a slump that was exacerbated by the EGP devaluation in 2016.
The “let it rust” boycott campaign played a role in February’s drop in car sales, the talking heads said on the airwaves last night. Hona Al Asema host Lama Gebreil questioned both Auto Arabia Media Group Editor-in-Chief Mohamed Shetta (who couldn’t help but take a swipe at AMIC) and Omar Balbaa, the head of the automotive division of the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce. Each agreed that the boycott campaign had an impact on the sales figures (watch, runtime: 14: 57).