Moller Auto: demand for used cars up 20% this year
► Demand for low-mileage used cars increased by almost 20%.
► The used car market is currently booming
► The company's data shows that in the first 8 months of this year, 3.9% of all cars delivered by the company were electric vehicles
According to Moller Auto's Baltic sales data, demand for low-use cars increased by almost 20% in the 8 months from January to August this year compared to the same period last year. Demand for new electric vehicles has also continued to grow, with the latter currently accounting for 3.9% of the company's total supply.
Moller Auto experts note that the used car market is replacing the new car market, due to various challenges in the sector: the shortage of raw materials, specifically microchips and semiconductors, continued disruption of supply chains, inflation. All of these factors have an impact on production, resulting in delays in the delivery of new cars. While the company's showrooms have a number of new cars available for immediate purchase and use, buyers may have to wait several months to get a car in a certain trim level. This is why people often choose a slightly used car over a brand new one.
"The used car market is booming right now. There are enough of them on the market today, but we are cautious about the future, because the stock is slowly depleting. While sales of new cars in the Baltic States declined in the first eight months of 2022, in September this year demand for new vehicles in Moller Auto showrooms in all Baltic States increased by 33% compared to the same period last year. This may lead to a gradual recovery of the market. This is also confirmed by the data of the Lithuanian market research company Auto tyrimai, which shows that in August and September this year, the number of new cars registered in the Baltic States increased by 6% and 14% respectively compared to the same period in 2021. Whether this trend will continue will depend on circumstances such as the war in Ukraine, inflation and the energy crisis,” says Izida Gerkena, Chief Operating Officer of Moller Auto in the Baltic States.
All industries are currently affected by global processes, she said, and the situation will only become clearer at the beginning of next year, when it will become clear how the winter and the rapid price increases in almost all sectors have affected people's purchasing power and business investment opportunities.
The electric vehicle market continues to grow steadily.
The company's data shows that in the first 8 months of this year, 3.9% of all cars delivered by the company were electric cars – last year in the same period it was 2.6%. According to publicly available data from Regitra, 1103 new electric vehicles were registered in the country until October this year – 33% more than in the same period last year, when 735 new electric vehicles were registered.
“Demand for electric cars across Europe is driven by rising fuel prices, a shift towards greener lifestyles and, of course, inflation. The energy crisis has pushed up electricity prices, leading many households to install solar power plants in an attempt to produce cheaper electricity, which can also be used to charge electric cars. Moreover, when purchasing an electric car, a person receives certain advantages, for example, natural persons receive up to 5,000 euro in state support, there are lower costs for maintenance, vehicle registration, free parking for electric vehicles," says I. Gerkena.
She adds that while the number of electric She adds that while the number of electric cars on the roads is constantly growing, Lithuania still has a lot of homework ahead of it to promote the development of greener mobility.
"First and foremost, Lithuania needs to pay more attention to the development of the charging infrastructure for electric vehicles and thus encourage the increased use of these vehicles," says I.Gerkena.
This year's 8-month Moller Auto data shows that the company's turnover increased by 5.5% compared to the same period last year and reached 203 million euro, while profit increased by 5.5% to almost 7 million euro.