Published

Venezuela Car Market Shrank Below 300 Units in March

Monthly vehicle sales in Venezuela, which peaked at 52,700 units in mid-2007, plummeted to fewer than 300 cars, trucks and buses last month, says industry group Camara Automotriz de Venezuela.
#economics

Share

Monthly vehicle sales in Venezuela, which peaked at 52,700 units in mid-2007, plummeted to fewer than 300 cars, trucks and buses last month, says industry group Camara Automotriz de Venezuela.

Monthly sales had fallen to around 10,000 units between 2010 and 2013. But volumes slid to less than half that pace in 2014. They have been dropping since then as the country sinks into a political and economic crisis. Last year the entire Venezuelan auto industry produced only 2,800 cars.

Bloomberg News notes that the country’s chronic shortage of American dollars has crippled assembly plants and dried up supplies of repair parts. Now, the news service says, even scrapyard are running out of used components.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Dept. of State says it is looking into Venezuela’s seizure on Tuesday of General Motors Co.’s assembly plant in Valencia. Reuters says local media reports blame the incident on a 17-year-old civil dispute with a supplier and not a move to nationalize the facility.

The State Dept. says it hopes to resolve the issue “rapidly and transparently.”

RELATED CONTENT

  • China and U.S. OEMs

    When Ford announced its 3rd quarter earning on October 24, the official announcement said, in part, “Company revenue was up 3 percent year over year, with net income and company adjusted EBIT both down year over year, primarily driven by continued challenges in China.” The previous day, perhaps as a preemptive move to answer the question “If things are going poorly in China, what are you doing about it?, Ford announced that it was establishing Ford China as a stand-alone business unit.

  • on the Genesis GV60 interior, EV sales in H1, Bentley Bentayga's wood work, Faurecia's advanced manufacturing & more

    The strange glowing orb in the Genesis GV60. . .global EV sales in the first half. . .creating wood for the Bentayga interior. . .the importance of material handling at Faurecia. . .lux ATPs. . .fast Porsche. . .fast Lambo. . .the Avalon Hybrid. . .Silverado steel. . .

  • On The German Auto Industry

    A look at several things that are going on in the German auto industry—from new vehicles to stamping to building electric vehicles.

Gardner Business Media - Strategic Business Solutions