Iraqi auto market faces downturn: Toyota leads amid sluggish sales
Shafaq News/ Iraq’s vehicle market, following a year-long uptick, hit a setback, registering a decline for the fifth consecutive month in June 2023.
Recent data by Focus2Move reveals new registrations plummeting by 15.2% to 7,403 units. This decline brings the total figures for the first half of 2023 to 40,973 vehicles, a contraction of 7.1% year-on-year.
Toyota, the Japanese automotive giant, emerged as the market front-runner with a sale of 10,266 vehicles, reflecting a modest 0.6% growth. Its closest competitor, Kia, witnessed a sharp 36.4% dip in sales, yet managed to record 9,356 unit sales. The South Korean marque Hyundai ascended a rank, clinching the third spot with an impressive 85.0% surge in sales, culminating in 4,765 new registrations.
MG and Chery followed suit with respective sales growths of 44.7% and a decline of 8.2%. Chevrolet, experiencing a rejuvenation, registered a 15.2% growth. Notably, Suzuki made a significant leap, climbing four ranks with a whopping 158.7% sales boost, tallying at 1,702 units.
Rounding off the top ten were Changan, Haval, and Great Wall, with the latter marking a significant 50.5% growth in new registrations.
In terms of individual models, the Kia Frontier retained its pole position despite shedding 25.9% in sales, closely trailed by the Toyota Hilux, which enjoyed a 20.3% sales ascent.
A retrospective view of the Iraqi automotive landscape indicates that the war against ISIS and its ensuing socio-economic implications significantly hampered the industry between 2014 and 2016. The nadir was hit in 2016, with sales plunging below the 40K mark. However, a renaissance was observed post-2017.
Alas, the global pandemic in 2020 applied the brakes, slashing sales by 16.7%. Yet, this proved to be a transient trough, with the market regaining momentum in 2021. Remarkably, 2022 witnessed a year-on-year growth of 26.7%, catapulting sales to 107,990 units - the highest annual figure in nearly a decade.
