Domestic resales fell by a third, while imports grew by the same amount. Analytics of the first half of 2022

The current year turned out to be almost the most stressful in the history of modern Ukraine due to the full-scale invasion of Russia. And the car market, too: there were no more factors that could dramatically affect the market either in the "Euro-Blakh" 2018 or in the "Covid" 2020. Experts of the Institute of Car Market Research studied the dynamics imports and sales of used cars and determined what most affected the market in the first half of 2022.

Sales of used cars decreased, but not by much

In total, during the first 6 months of 2022, Ukrainians purchased 564,100 used cars. This is 10.7% less than in the same period last year in 2021 and 21.8% more than in the same period of 2020.

At the same time, domestic resales accounted for 50.6% of the total number of transactions ( 285.5 thousand units ), and import of cars with mileage — 49.4% ( 278.6 thousand units ). For comparison, in 2021, from January to June, 204,600 used cars were imported from abroad, which accounted for 32.4% of the total number of sales.

This rate of imported cars with mileage turned out to be a record in the history of the Ukrainian car market in two aspects:

• Quantitative. Since 1997, more used passenger cars have not been brought to Ukraine during the same period.
• Percentage. For the first time, the share of imports of used cars from abroad reached half of the total number of sales on the secondary market.

Activity on the market was preserved thanks to "zero" customs clearance

During the first two months of 2022, the situation on the secondary market was stable. With the beginning of a full-scale war, activity on the market decreased, service centers temporarily stopped working. Registration operations were resumed only from mid-March.

The beginning of the growth or, more precisely, the recovery of the Ukrainian car market was in mid-April, when "zero" customs clearance began. At the same time, along with the import of used cars, domestic resales also grew : Ukrainians sold both recently imported cars and their existing cars, which were "brought in" by others from abroad.

However, it was possible to achieve good quantitative indicators thanks to the import of cars with mileage, because there was a noticeable decline in domestic resales on the market. Thus, the import of used cars from January to June 2022 compared to the same period last year increased by 36.2%, while domestic resales fell by 33.1%.

What to expect in the future?

In the first half of 2022, the Ukrainian car market was most affected by five factors:

• the beginning of a full-scale war;
• temporary suspension of seaports;
• introduction of "zero" customs clearance;
• cancellation of "zero" customs clearance;
• exchange rate change.

The fact that, even in such difficult conditions, Ukrainians buy cars in such quantity indicates a great need for mobility and a shortage of vehicles in the country, according to the experts of the Institute of Car Market Research.

However, the cancellation of zero customs clearance led to a tenfold reduction in the import of used cars from abroad, which will further reduce activity on the market in general.

It is economically unprofitable to import used cars from abroad at the current rates of customs payments and the current value of the main foreign currencies. All this together can lead to negative processes on the car market: the aging of the car fleet and the increase in the price of the most popular categories of vehicles.

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