2024-01-21 01:20:01
New car sales in Morocco have not recovered following the decline recorded during the two years of the Corona pandemic, especially in the context of inflation that affected the purchasing power of families, a trend that is expected to continue during the current year 2024, in light of the high prices and borrowing restrictions that limit the purchase of new vehicles.
The demand for new cars in Morocco did not meet the expectations of importers last year. Inflation, high costs of financing the purchase of cars, and fuel prices have contributed to preventing the take-off of sales, which remained below the level they reached before the health crisis.
Car sales in the market only increased by 0.1% last year, compared to the previous year, 2022, to stabilize at 161.5 thousand cars, following jumping to 175.3 thousand cars in 2021, which increased by 30% compared to 2020.
Adel Bennani, President of the Automotive Importers Association, said that the current situation in the sector is due to the difficult economic context, characterized by the repercussions of drought on family incomes, especially in rural areas, the difficulty of accessing loans, and global tensions.
He pointed out that car sales were affected by the decrease in the purchasing power of families due to inflation, which rose over two years by 15%, according to data from the High Commission for Planning. These sales were also affected by the increase in fuel prices in the retail market by 60% over two years.
In addition to these factors that affected demand, the high cost of loans following the main interest rate was raised by the Central Bank on three occasions, and the banks’ resort to tightening the conditions for granting loans, in addition to the increase in vehicle prices by rates ranging between 15% and 20% over a period of three years. As a result of pressure on raw materials on some products.
Bennani notes that while importers were unable to provide a sufficient supply of new vehicles in 2021 and 2022, and prices rose, many families turned to the used car market.
In recent years, Morocco has taken measures to limit the import of used cars, by prohibiting the import of cars that are more than 5 years old. These measures came in response to new car companies, which argue that importing used cars deprives them of shares in the local market.
Agents are anticipating facing a difficult year, as sales will not witness a take-off that ends the slowdown that has marked the last three years, as they expect global growth to decline.
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